Tangled Web
by Lady Koh
Summary: COMPLETE! AU. Kaoru is in arranged marriage to Shinomori Aoshi, a man she hardly knows. But what happens when she runs away and meets a dark and mysterious Kenshin? K&K, A
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** Sigh I wish I owned Kenshin; alas, they say he and all the rights surrounding anything concerning him belong to Watsuki Nobuhiro.

**Summary:** AU. Kaoru is in arranged marriage to Shinomori Aoshi, a man she hardly knows. But what happens when she runs away and meets a dark and mysterious Kenshin? I tried this story once a long, _long _ time ago, didn't like how it was going, and now I'm trying it again. I doubt anyone will remember it, but that's probably for the better. I've made several changes.

**Rating:** It's rated the way it is because I'm not sure where I'm going with this. It may go up, or it may go down. I prefer to err on the side of caution.

Now, on to the story! Enjoy! (If you don't, please don't flame me!)

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"Kaoru, come here!" Kamiya Kaoru looked up from the radishes she was picking. "Kaoru, I need to speak to you!" The girl sighed and set her basket of radishes on the ground.

"Misao, could you take these when you finish?" She asked her friend.

"Oh, fine, make me carry twice what I have to!" Misao huffed. "Why don't you have your brother do it? Yahiko never does any work anyway."

"That's not true!" Yahiko threw a radish at Misao's head.

"Kaoru!" her father's voice was louder now, and filled with annoyance.

"Alright, look, I don't care who does it, just see that it gets done!" she yelled at them as she ran back to the house.

She took off her shoes and ran inside. "Yes? Otosan! What is it?" Her father appeared with a stern look.

"Get out of those clothes." He said matter-of-factly. "Go wash your hands and face. Your grandfather has surprised us with a visit." From the look on his face, Kaoru knew her father was not happy about this surprise visit.

"Yes Father." Kaoru knew her father and her mother's father did not get along well, even less so after her mother's death.

The old man and his family had been fairly well off, while her father came from a poor farming family. However, he made enough money to be considered a groom for Kaoru's mother. Kaoru wasn't sure of the details, but she knew her parents had fallen in love, but when her father had asked for her hand in marriage, her grandfather had refused. The pair eloped and her grandfather had originally disowned them, but after Kaoru's birth, the old man had made his way back into their lives, much to the displeasure of her father.

After Kaoru had made herself presentable, she made her way to the back porch, where her father and grandfather were having tea.

"Ojisan." Kaoru said softly. Her grandfather turned around slowly, them smiled the way a man smiles when looking at a good cut of meat.

"Oh, Kaoru! My goodness, I almost didn't recognize you! You've become quite the young woman. And you look so much like your dear mother…" The old man sighed. "I've come with some rather important news. Come here child, sit down and have a cup of tea with us."

"Yes, Ojisan." Kaoru sat down across from her grandfather and poured him another cup of tea. She desperately wanted to know what was going on, but she knew her grandfather would be very annoyed if she spoke, so she was silent.

"Well, aren't you going to tell her what you came all the way here to say?" Her father said very suddenly. Kaoru smiled inwardly; she knew her father had no patience for the older man. "If you don't, I will."

"Hmm…Ah, yes." Her grandfather shot a dirty look at the younger man, but sighed, as if finally relenting to a child. "Very well, let's see…Kaoru, have you heard of a politician named Shinomori Yukata?"

She knew she should answer with a simple nod of her head, but she had seen something about this politician being assassinated a few days ago. "Yes, I read in the paper that he was killed-"

"Good." Her grandfather cut her off. "Well, he was a good friend of mine, and we often gambled together. One night, after we had had quite a lot to drink, I began to tell him about you. We got to joking, and well, some how or other, I managed to gamble you away. Of course, he put up a large some of money, but her won."

"What?" Kaoru cried. How could her grandfather have done something like that? She knew that the old man had never particularly cared for her, but to do something so…despicable? She didn't think that it was possible.

"Hold your tongue, I haven't finished. Now, as you can imagine, I felt horrible, and I realized I had to do something to fix this mess I had gotten myself into. I couldn't very well try to gamble you back; that would not be fair. So I did what I could to change the situation for the better. 'Shinomori-san,' I said, 'I hear you have a son a few years older than my granddaughter. Suppose I give Kaoru to him instead?'

"He said, 'Very well, I am old, and the heat of a young man no longer runs through my veins. I have no need for a woman.'

"I suggested that, as we were such good friends, we should bind the two of you in marriage. He disagreed, so I said 'Why don't we leave it up to chance?' I told him you were lowly born, though you had some good blood in you-" Kaoru felt her father stiffen at her side. "-And you were very pretty. He finally relented, and I won.

"Now, her was not very pleased about this. He made a new wager; if he won, the bride's family would pay the groom's family a considerable sum of money. If he lost, he would give the bride's family the same amount. Knowing your families great debt, I was hesitant at first, but I decided that I had gotten myself into this mess, if I lost, I would pay him myself."

"And, as luck would have it…" Kaoru could hear her father grinding his teeth, but the man said nothing more.

"As luck would have it," her grandfather continued, "I won. You are to be married to Shinomori Aoshi. He is the bastard son of Yukata, but he's been named as heir. You'll live very well, and your family will be relieved of some of the debt it's in. What do you think of that?" Her grandfather seemed very pleased with himself.

Kaoru's father sat in silence; he had found out before she had, and seemed to have nothing to say to her grandfather. "How…how…" she stuttered. "How dare you! What makes you think you've got any say in who I marry, or how I live my life? What right do you have?" She seethed.

"Be quiet! You should be thanking me, Kaoru. You would never have married someone so high without my help. And you father has worked himself into very deep debt. With my help, your family may work their way out. You should see this as an opportunity to help you family. Don't be so selfish. You aren't the first girl with an arranged marriage, nor will you be the last."

"Get away from me!" Kaoru screamed. "How dare you take me away from what I love? I hate you!" She ran into the house, tears streaming down her face.

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When her father came to her later, she was in the yard letting of steam with a sword. Her father smiled; the only thing his daughter loved more than working on their farm was practicing her swordsmanship. It was a style he had devised himself – Kamiya Kasshin.

"Kaoru…" He said softly.

"What makes him think he can do that? He doesn't consider himself part of this family, so why is he allowed to make choices for us?"

"Kaoru, there is something I need you to understand." She stopped and looked at her father. "Kaoru…if I refuse to marry you to Shinomori-san, we will owe him a great deal of money in your place. You're grandfather was right about how badly we were in debt, and I don't have the money. Don't take this the wrong way, but it would help us greatly if you would consent." Her father sighed.

Kaoru nodded stiffly. "I understand perfectly. If you don't mind, I'm going to go back out and work. Please tell Ojisan that I've given my consent." She turned her back and walked away from her father angrily.

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"His name is Aoshi?" Misao asked, startled.

"Yeah, why?" Kaoru and Misao were in bed, whispering quietly about what had happened all day.

"Well, it probably doesn't matter." Misao smiled.

"Tell me?" Kaoru pleaded.

"Alright… Well, back when I was still living with my mother, there was a young man named Aoshi who lived there. He was about ten years older than me, but I really liked him. I followed him everywhere; I was always with him. I was probably a big pain to him, but that didn't really matter to me. He was such a good friend to me, and I greatly preferred the time I spent with him to being with my mother.

"Well, this guy was cold as ice. Seriously, he never showed any emotion whatsoever, and he didn't talk a lot."

"Sounds like your opposite." Kaoru joked.

"Yeah... Anyway, I realized I was in love with him. When I finally worked up the courage to tell him, he told me he felt the same, but that he had to leave. He said that he would come back, though, and that then he would marry me. I guess I'll never know if he came back; I ran away a few months later. He probably didn't mean it huh? I mean, I was only thirteen or so."

"Misao… What if-?" Kaoru whispered.

"It's not him Kaoru. How could it be? Do you realize how many Aoshis there must be in Japan?" Misao laughed. "I'm going to sleep. G'night." She lay back on her futon and closed her eyes.

"Yeah…" Kaoru sighed. _What you mean, Misao, _She thought, _is that even if it were the same Aoshi, you wouldn't be able to be with him anyway. I'm so sorry my friend. If I could change it, believe me, I would._ She squeezed her eyes shut, hoping to stop the tears from getting loose.

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So that's chapter one. I need to know if I should go on with this story, so please review!


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **Well, you see, I was a good girl all year 'round, and at Christmas, I asked Santa for the rights to Rurouni Kenshin. I got a big light-up palm tree, some chocolate that made me very happy, and some socks, but, I did not get the rights to RK, so, I still don't own anything…except my light-up palm tree and some socks.

Hey, thanks for all the reviews! They made me a very happy panda. Several of you seemed to wish pain upon Kaoru's grandfather though, and I can't for the life of me figure out why… Everybody wants to meet Kenshin, who, I'm sorry to say won't be appearing until the next chapter or two. I'm hopping everyone can wait that long!

So, here's the chapter you have waited all week for! Have fun!

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The wedding ceremony took place three weeks later, on a day deemed prosperous by her grandfather's soothsayer. It was the first time Kaoru met Aoshi, and she could not help but notice that he was rather handsome. Her grandfather said that he was only a few years older than herself, but Kaoru found out that he was 26; a full nine years her senior.

Kaoru was surprised to see that no one came with him to the wedding. Normally the bride and groom's families share drinks of sake to signify the joining of the two families. Kaoru's father, grandfather, and her brother Yahiko were with her, but she felt sorry for Aoshi, wondering what had become of the rest of his family.

Kaoru felt very elegant in her white wedding kimono and make up, but she found she didn't care. She was more interested in Aoshi, and snuck glances at him throughout the entire ceremony, hating him and curious about him at the same time.

After sansankudo was preformed, and the couple had offered their twigs of Sakai to the gods, the ceremony was over. Kaoru found herself a married woman, and was somewhat perturbed by the thought. Her feelings must have shown on her face, because, when no one was paying any attention, Aoshi leaned close and whispered, "I apologize if this is not what you wanted. I would have preferred a different path as well, but such is life." His voice sent shivers of fear up Kaoru's spine. He was completely void of emotion.

After the wedding was over, Aoshi had returned to his home, while Kaoru stayed behind for a few weeks to prepare herself for married life, and to say her good byes. Her father convinced Misao to go with her; he knew Kaoru would need a friend in her new life more than anything else.

After saying tearful good-byes, Kaoru and Misao were escorted to the rickshaw by her father and Yahiko. "This man will take the two of you to the train station. You do have the tickets, right Kaoru?" Her father asked.

"Of course. I wish that you could come with us to the station, though…" Kaoru said, hoping her voice wouldn't crack.

"Oh, go on and get out of here, ugly." Yahiko said, plastering a tough grin on his face. Kaoru could see the tears in his eyes.

Kaoru and Misao got into the rickshaw, but were silent. As Kaoru watched as her childhood home disappear down the street, tears filled her eyes. Suddenly, she cried out.

"What is it?" The rickshaw driver asked.

"I've forgotten something. I don't suppose you could wait for a moment while I go and get it?"

The driver sighed, but stopped the rickshaw. "Hurry up."

Kaoru leapt out and ran back to the gate of the house. Everyone had gone back inside or out to the fields, but Kaoru didn't care. She bent down and ripped a square of cloth from her under robe, and, taking a handful of dirt, she tied it up tightly in the fabric and ran back to the rickshaw. When asked later by Misao why she had done so, she replied quietly, "If I take a piece of my home with me, I can never truly be parted from it."

Kaoru spent most of the time sleeping on the train, but Misao was rather excited. She had never been on a train before; when she had run away from home, she had moved about on foot. She had never even been on a horse. She sighed, thinking about her home…

"_Misao, why can't you do anything right? I tell you to do the laundry, but you leave the clothes dirty! What's wrong with you girl?" Her mother screamed as she slapped her daughter. _

_Misao said nothing, just thinking about how, only the week before, her mother had gone on this same rampage about how she had scrubbed the clothes too much, and that they were wearing thin. _

_It was always like this with her mother, the woman never seemed satisfied. Misao couldn't even remember her father; he had died when she was very small, leaving her with this monstrosity of a mother. _

"_Misao, are you even listening to me?" Her mother gave her another slap for good measure. "Go make me some tea. My bones are aching, and I want something hot. And make sure it's not so damn strong this time!" She yelled after the girl. _

_Misao sulked her way to the kitchen to find the tea. As the scent of green tea wafted up, she inhaled deeply. The scent reminded her so much of him… he's only been gone a few months, but she missed him horridly, and still cried sometimes at night. _

"_Hurry up with that tea, Baka!" Her mother's voice sounded angrily through the small house, and Misao cringed, her face still sore from where she had been slapped. She had half a mind to use her kunai daggers on the woman, but being brought up in a Ninja village, she knew better. _

_She set the tea down in front of her mother, still thinking of him. She didn't notice that she was smiling slightly, but her mother did. The next moment, her mother hurled the teacup at Misao, burning the girls face and cutting her forehead. "What did you put in here, bakadeshi? What have I ever done to you to make you treat me so badly? I'm you're mother, damn it!" She screamed at the top of her lungs._

"_I was about to ask you the same thing." Misao whispered, blinking blood and tears out of her eyes. "I hate you." Misao ran out of the house into the night, not thinking where she was going, just desperate to get away. It wasn't until later that she realized she had nothing but the clothes on her back, and, more importantly, that he wouldn't know where to find her if he came back. _

The girls were surprised to be greeted at the station by none other than Aoshi. "Aoshi-san," Kaoru said softly, unsure how to address her new husband. "I didn't expect you to meet us here."

He replied with a soft "Hm," uninterested and quiet. Kaoru had a feeling she was going to have to get used to this. "Who's this? You're servant?" He gestured to Misao.

Kaoru started to say something, but Misao was faster. "Hai, Aoshi-sama, My name is Makimachi Misao, and I am now your servant as well." She bowed very low. Kaoru thought she saw a flicker of recognition in Aoshi's eyes, and wondered if Misao had seen it as well, or if it had only been imagined.

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OK, how was that? I know it was a little shorter than Chapter 1, but it felt like the stuff that's going to be in the next chapter should stay there. Please don't throw sporks at me!

Anyway… Please Review!


	3. Chapter 3

Now it's time for an exciting Question and Answer session!

**Question:** KAORU AND AOSHI GOT MARRIED!

**Answer:** Yes, they got married, but fear not! This is a K&K fic! I hate to give away major plot points, but this means that Kenshin and Kaoru do, in fact, get together. Don't worry! It will all work out, I promise!

**Question:** When do we meet Kenshin?

**Answer:** Um, well, I guess you really meet him next chapter. But read this one, because he's in there! I swear!

**Question:** What is your policy regarding reviews?

**Answer:** Well, I don't really have one, but since a number of people have this story on their alert/favorite list, (DOMO ARIGATO!) I would hope that the same number of people would review. I can make do with less, but three reviews is pushing it. I don't mean to be rude, but if no one is willing to review, I will not continue with this story. BUT (!), if it will help at all, I've almost finished chapter 4, and I can probably put that up on Wednesday. Look for it.

**Question:** Do you own Rurouni Kenshin?

**Answer:** Nope!

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Kaoru, while educated some on the subject by her mother before her death, was not familiar with what a man and his wife might do in bed. By her first month of marriage, this still had not changed. In the beginning, she had thought, perhaps, once they got to know each other, some of the things her mother had vaguely described might happen; however, Aoshi did not seem interested in getting to know his knew wife. He hardly spent any time with her, and it was a rare occasion indeed that he actually spoke to her.

So it was that Kaoru spent most of her time doing not much of anything with Misao, who was convinced, despite anything Kaoru said, that this Aoshi was not the man Misao had promised herself to. Kaoru, however, was not so sure.

Misao had been acting odd lately, Kaoru had noticed. It had all started with Misao introducing herself as the older girl's servant. When asked about it later, Misao had simply replied that she thought it might make Kaoru look like she came from a better family, "And besides," She said. "Who brings their best friend along when the move into their new husbands house?" Kaoru had given up finding out what was wrong with Misao, at least for a while, and turned her attention to getting to know the silent man that was her husband. This was made somewhat harder by the fact that every few days he had to leave on business.

One night over dinner, Kaoru found herself enraged at Aoshi. _Look at him!_ She fumed. _He hasn't said a word to me all night! He just sits there, acting like I don't exist!_

Suddenly, he spoke. "Kaoru…" The name sounded foreign on his lips, and it caught the girl of guard. She hopped she hadn't accidentally said one of her thoughts out loud. "Kaoru," He tried again. "I spoke with your father after the wedding, and he said you were the Assistant Master to a sword style he created himself. I noticed you did not bring a sword with you, but, if you would like, there is an abandoned shrine near the valley that I have made into something of a practice room. You may have a sword and practice there, if you like."

Kaoru was stunned. She had never heard him say so much at once, and it took her a moment to realize what he said. "Really? You would let me do that?" She asked softly. He shot her a glace that clearly said _'Don't be foolish. I just said I would, didn't I?'_ Kaoru restrained herself from throwing herself at him in an embrace, though she could not stop the smile that spread across her face. She bowed politely, and whispered "Domo arigato. This is the best gift I have ever received." Aoshi simply nodded his head in reply.

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"Wow, he really said he'd let you practice here?" Misao asked softly. The two had just entered the shrine-turned-practice room. It was really just one large room with storage in closets to the back, but it was exquisite. Kaoru and Misao opened most of the sliding panels, hopping to let in some of the afternoon light. It was a nice day, though black clouds promised a storm.

The girls opened the closets to find all sorts of weapons. "Hey, he has kunai daggers in here!" she cried, pulling several out. "And look at this! I haven't seen a kodachi in years!"

"How odd." Kaoru commented as she found a wooden sword. "Misao, will you go through some katas with me? Maybe afterwards we could spar a little?" She asked hopefully.

Misao squealed with joy. "Of course!"

Nearly an hour later, when the two were sweaty and tired, the heard a call from outside, and, upon further investigation, the found a one of Aoshi's servants standing in the garden. "Ah, Kaoru-sama," The man bowed low to Kaoru, but completely ignored Misao, causing the younger woman to shoot him a glare. He did not notice. "Aoshi-sama has had to leave very suddenly to Kyoto on extremely important business, and feels that it is not safe for you to be away from the house. He requests that you return home immediately."

Kaoru sighed. "Arigato. We'll be up as soon. Please, go ahead." The man seemed disgruntled by this, but bowed again and left.

When they had put their weapons away, Kaoru sat down on the porch in a huff. "I can't believe that guy!" She fumed. "He gives me something to be happy about, then he has to leave on 'business'! I want to know what his so-called business is! You know I'm not allowed to be out of the house while he's gone, right Misao?"

Misao came and put a hand on her friends shoulder. "I know Kaoru; you won't let me forget it." She said with a smile.

"I mean, why can't I go out? What's he so afraid of?" Kaoru looked down into the valley, finding it very beautiful in the setting sun, when she suddenly noticed something "Hey, those shadows down there almost look like people and houses, don't they? Though I doubt if anyone lives down there…" She looked harder, trying to decide if it was just a trick of the light.

"Who knows? Come on Kaoru, we should probably head back now." Misao answered.

"You go ahead. I'll be right there; I just want to stay for a while and watch the sunset." Misao nodded and walked away.

Kaoru watched the setting sun in silence. She felt as though her happiness was slipping away behind the hills with the fiery orb. When the last sliver of light had disappeared, she felt utterly alone and abandoned. She stood up and ran. She didn't know where she was going, and she didn't care, as long as it was away from Aoshi, away from everything she had grown to hate about her new life.

As she ran, it grew darker, and the first fat droplets of the coming storm hit the ground. Kaoru ran on, not noticing as the ground beneath her feet turned to mud or when her tears mixed with the rain. She did notice the small Buddha figurines sitting serenely by her path, and she did notice that she was shaking from the cold, but she had no intention of stopping until her rage had been drowned by the frigid rain.

Ahead, she wondered if she was seeing lights through the trees, or if they were just her imagination. Her breath came hard and strained, but she did not slow. She was suddenly curious to know if there was a village in this valley after all, though she was not long in thinking about it; she felt a sudden pain in her leg and fell forward. Her head struck the ground, and she knew no more.

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He was swaggering home in the rain, slightly drunk, and making up a song to amuse himself when he saw something odd. Right there, in his path, he could see the shape of a young girl, lying in the path. Her clothes were wet and muddy, and he wondered what, exactly, she was doing there.

"Huh." He said, squatting down next to her for a better look. It appeared to him, even in his drunken state, that she had gotten her foot stuck in a hole, and fallen, hitting her head on a nearby log. "That would explain that gash on your forehead…" He poked her, testing to see if she was awake.

When he got no response from gently poking and shaking her, a thought occurred to him. He checked for a pulse, which he found, though he noticed her skin was as cold as ice. He decided the best course of action would be to take her home with him, and get her warm and dry.

He gently picked the girl up, deciding it would be alright if he left his sake jug there, as it was almost empty anyway. Holding her little body close to him, he could feel her shivering. He had been hopping to slip into bed unnoticed that night, but he realized that he might need a little help with this girl.

There was no light coming from his house, and he assumed that this meant its occupants were asleep, but he was to have no such luck.

The second he closed the door, an icy voice came from behind him. "Where have you been?" The color drained from his face.

"Uhh…" he said, unsure how to respond.

"You've been out drinking again, haven't you?" The voice was shriller now, and he felt his blood stop. "Sano, you swore to me-"

"Listen, Megumi, I really need you to help me right now-"

"Why would I help you? Do you have any idea how angry I am? You're just a good for nothing-"

"Meg…"

"Low-down-"

"Fox…"

"Lying-"

"Megumi!" He roared. She stopped, taken aback by his sudden outburst. "Please, I found this girl…" He heard Megumi take a deep, slow breath, heard her walk across the room, and then the dark house was bathed in light as she lit a lantern. She turned and looked at him, the hard expression on her face turning to one of surprise as she saw the girl in his arms.

"Is she still alive?" Sano nodded. "Alright, I want you to go get some bandages and boil some water. I'll need to have a look at her, but she probably has a concussion." Megumi crossed the room and felt the girls' forehead. "She's so cold…. Go find some blankets and some clean clothes." Megumi started to walk away, presumably to find supplies, but Sano stopped her.

"Hey, Meg, where should I put her?"

"Oh, put her on Himura's bed. He never uses it, and besides, he's not home anyway." Sano did as he was told.

Several hours later, when Himura did return, the house was dark and quiet. Sano and Megumi had gone to bed, once the latter was sure her patient would not need to be on constant observation. Himura entered the house silently and without greeting, which was fine by him.

What was not fine by him, however, was the fact that he could sense something different in the house; something was out of place. He opened the door to his room and stopped dead, looking at the figure on his futon. He entered the room slowly, water dripping from his clothes and face, and looked at the sleeping shape on his bed. Whoever it was did not feel menacing, but he rested his hand on his katana out of habit.

Curious, he approached the futon. Suddenly, the figure moved and gave a moan, and Himura hissed and took a step back.

There was a woman in his room!

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OK, so that is the end of chapter 3! See, I told you; Kenshin does show up in there! I know it's not a lot, but there will be more of him in the next chapter.

Please, PLEASE review! I'll love you forever! Feel free to make comments, suggestions, or corrections of any mistakes you may have seen, but I'd appreciate it if there were no flames.


	4. Chapter 4

OK, honestly, I feel like a bad person for demanding reviews from you guys. I know it's not a nice thing to do, and I personally hate it when other people do it, but I've been going through some issues with my life, and, needless to say, have not been a happy person because of it. When I saw that the number of reviews had shrunk drastically from chapter 1 to chapter 2, I got all depressed and sad. Oh well. I promise I won't ever do it again, so don't hate me too much! Lol.

Anyway, I was asked by gabyhyatt if this fic was set in the Meji. I've decided that it isn't, but I'm not 100 positive it's set in the Bakamatsu either. I'm pretty sure it is, but we'll see. Probably more towards the end of the Bakamatsu, though… I don't know… Give opinions in your review if you feel like it.

Umm… let it be known that the first half of this chapter is crap. If you want to flame me for it, I will understand, and totally agree with everything you say. It's just that I need that stuff to happen for the plot to progress, and I couldn't think of any other way to do it. Gomen nasai!

Oh, btw: I don't own RK.

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Himura shook himself mentally and forced himself to relax. He walked across the room until he was standing directly over the sleeping figure, a rather attractive young girl with hair the color of the night sky. He took his hand from the hilt of his sword, deciding she was not a threat. He stood looking at her for several minutes, until his attention was moved to a drop of water rolling down his nose. He watched it fall silently, then land on the girl's cheek.

Her eyes opened suddenly, and Himura felt himself gasp in surprise. Her eyes were clouded with sleep, and he knew she was not really awake, but he could not help but admire her azure eyes. They closed just as quickly, but he felt his heart pounding in his chest. There was something about this girl he liked and disliked, though he could not quite put his finger on it.

The drop of water that had fallen on her face now ran down her cheek the way a tear might, and Himura moved to brush it away. However, he froze at the sight of his stained hands. He pulled his fingers into a fist, and turned away.

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Misao stood at the abandoned shrine, looking down at the valley. When Kaoru had not returned last night, no one had known what to do. A search party had been organized almost immediately, and, although they had searched half the night, there was no sign of Kaoru. The previous night's storm had washed away her footprints, so they had no idea where she had gone.

Misao sighed and crossed her arms. If Kaoru wanted to run away, let her. She wasn't happy with her life anyway. _And besides,_ Misao reasoned, _there hasn't been a ransom note yet. There would be one if she were kidnapped. She obviously doesn't want to deal with this now. She'll come back when she wants to. _

The girl walked back to the house, brooding. She had no idea what to do about this whole mess. The powers that be wanted to write to Aoshi immediately and tell him about his missing wife. Of course, he seemed to have enough to worry about with whatever it was he was doing in Kyoto without the added stress of Kaoru's disappearance, and would not be happy if he had to come home.

So, Misao, a crafty little weasel, managed to convince everyone that they should just stay calm, and pretend nothing was wrong. Aoshi didn't have to find out just yet; he already had enough on his plate. They would all simply wait for some word from Kaoru for at least a week before telling Aoshi.

It was a stupid plan, Misao knew, but she also knew that if her friend had wanted to come home last night, she would have, and there was no use searching for her if she didn't want to be found.

_I know it's probably stupid to worry, but I hope you're alright, where ever you are._ Misao smiled. _Kaoru's fine. She can take care of herself. _

"Misao!" She could hear one of Aoshi's servants calling her, and she sighed.

"What?" She jogged the rest of the way to the house, where she saw the same servant that had informed the girls of Aoshi's departure last night. He was one of the higher servants, but Misao wasn't sure of his name; she thought it was Matsuda or something, but didn't chance offending him.

"Misao, we've changed our minds. We want you to write Aoshi-sama a letter explaining that Kaoru has gone missing. We think he'll be more forgiving to you, since you're her savant, and he can't punish you without her permission." He bowed. _What they want is for me to take the blame. _

Misao curled her lip, but nodded her head. She didn't really have anyway out of this; if she refused, someone would probably write the letter for her and make her sign it. Or just forge her signature. She sighed. "Fine…"

"Arigato, Misao-san. We'll find you some paper and an ink stone… Err, you can write can't you?" He asked timidly.

Misao's eye twitched. "Of course I can write." She said, feeling the heat in her face rise. _Who do these people think I am, some sort of dirt-poor farmer who…Oh, right._

She sat down quietly to compose her letter, having no idea how to start. _Dear Aoshi_, she began, but crumpled the paper immediately. She tried a few other variations before simply settling on _Aoshi-sama_.

She wrote the letter, not thinking as she wrote. _Why do I have to do this? Why can't that Matsuda or whatever his name is write this?_ When she was finished, she read it quietly to herself.

_I humbly beg your forgiveness, though I'm not sure what crime I have committed. The servants of the house have urged me to write to you, but I don't know what to say. I guess I could begin by saying what is in my mind. I feel like I may be falling in love with you. That probably isn't the right thing to say, but it's true. I find myself wondering if you could ever love me back, and, although I know you couldn't, you must forgive me for playing with the idea of it in my mind. _

_You are so cold to me; I suppose that's my fault, for letting you think of me as a servant in your house. But that coldness is what draws me to you. It makes you so mysterious, so far out of my reach, that I'm desperate to learn more about you. _

_Please forgive me; I know it could never happen._

Misao looked at the letter again. _Wonderful, _she thought sourly. _What am I supposed to do now, just stick a little 'P.S. your wife is missing because of me!' at the end? I'll have to write another one. _

She left the first letter unsigned, folding it in half and moving it aside. She then wrote another letter, one that conveyed her apologizes for letting Kaoru disappear and the like. She folded this one in half too, and took it to go find Matsuda, so he could send it.

Searching the house, she began to think to herself about Aoshi. She told herself that the two men were not the same, but the letter made her realize that she thought they were. No, she had thought they were the same since she saw him at the train station, she realized guiltily. She was so in love with him; how could life have been so cruel?

"Oh, Misao!" She felt a hand on her shoulder and whipped around to find Matsuda standing behind her. "I just sent your letter!" Misao felt her jaw drop.

"You did…what?" She managed to squeak. "I'm holding it here in my hand!" As proof, she held up her apology filled letter.

"Oh, I mailed the one that was on your desk. I didn't read it, but I thought that was the one you wanted to send him. Is that a better draft? Oh well, it won't make much of a difference. I'm sure they both say basically the same thing." Misao managed a weak nod as he walked off.

_What did that letter say?_ She thought quickly. _Oh, no! That was my love letter… _She crumpled the other letter in rage. _Did I sign that one? What will he think when he reads that one? What should I do? Should I send this one anyway? No, I can't do that…_

Misao felt like she was about to explode. "Kaoru!" She yelled. "Why did you make my life so hard? Come home already!" She punched the wall, unsure if it was out of anger, frustration, sadness, or a combination of the three.

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Kaoru groggily opened her eyes. Her ankle hurt and her head was throbbing, and she couldn't quite remember what had happened last night. _Something about running…_

She blinked, suddenly realizing she was not at home. She looked around, trying to decide what was going on, when her eyes fell on a man, sitting in the far corner. He had deep red hair, and a cross-shaped scar on his left cheek. She wondered where he got it. His harsh eyes were a color she could not decide on. Almost purple, but darker. Those eyes, she noticed were looking right at her. The man was holding a sword. And smiling.

Kaoru squeezed her eyes closed as tight as she could, hopping that when she opened them again, the man would be gone, and she would be back in Aoshi's house. She thought she heard a faint chuckle, but could not be sure.

When she opened her eyes again, the man was gone, but she was still in the strange room. She could hear people talking in another room, and sat up to hear them better.

She decided instantly that this was a bad idea, and she lay down again until the pain in her head faded. She heard the door slide open, and looked up to see a woman standing there. "Good morning. I see you've met Himura. I would tell you that his bark is worse than his bite, but that would be a lie." The woman smiled. "Feeling up for some breakfast?"

"My head hurts." Kaoru replied. _Oh, that's it Kaoru. Amaze them all with your wit and charm._

The woman snorted. "I would assume so. Apparently, you took quite the tumble. You have a sprained ankle and a mild concussion, so I wouldn't do too much moving around just yet. By the way, my name is Takani Megumi."

"Oh, nice to meet you. Thank you for taking care of me… My name is Kaoru." Megumi seemed to be waiting for something more, but Kaoru did not feel inclined to share anything else.

"I see. Well, you're quite welcome. I think you aught to be able to walk to on that leg; just take it slow, and be careful. Come on, I'll help you get dressed for breakfast." The older woman helped Kaoru into a very simple blue cotton kimono, and led her to the kitchen, where the red-headed man from earlier was sitting (this time without his sword, Kaoru noticed) with another, rather tall man with wild brown hair that stuck straight up. He reminded her of a rooster.

"Kaoru, this is Sagara Sanosuke," Megumi nodded at the taller man.

"Just call me Sano. Everyone else does." He grinned and Kaoru nodded.

"And this is Himura Kenshin." Megumi nodded in the general direction of the other man, who nodded his head slightly in response.

"Nice to meet you, Kenshin." Kaoru bowed slightly, noticing that he simply gave her a cold look.

"He doesn't talk much, so don't be offended if it seems like he's ignoring you." Megumi whispered. Kenshin looked as though he might have heard Megumi, but made no comment.

Kaoru sat down and changed the topic. "I'm starving. I feel like I haven't had a meal in a week!"

"Three days." Sano said as Megumi dished out breakfast.

"What?" Kaoru looked at him as though he was speaking French. "What did you just say?"

"You've been asleep for three days. We were starting to really worry, but Himura told us that you were awake this morning, so it looks like we worried for nothing. How's you're head feeling? That cut looks like it'll heal fine. You did a good job with this one Fox. I don't think it'll even leave a scar." He grinned at Megumi, but Kenshin shifted almost uncomfortably.

Kaoru wasn't quite sure what to say, so she simply said, "I don't know how to repay you for your kindness."

Both Megumi and Sano began to say something, but Kenshin beat them. " You don't need to. It would be best if you left as soon as possible." And with that, he got up and walked outside. Kaoru was slightly taken aback. Megumi apologized for his rudeness, and Sano ran out after him.

"Himura! What was that all about?" He said, annoyed, as he caught up with his friend. "She was just being polite!"

"I know," The other man replied. "But I don't want her here longer than she has to be. I'm going to work; you and Megumi should come soon as well." He gave Sano a meaningful glance and walked off.

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So, what did you think of it? Besides the first part of the chapter? Like I said, there's some stuff in there that needed to happen that I couldn't think of another way to do…Urg. I may try to redo it at a later time, but right now, I want to shoot this chapter…

Please review!


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: ** I don't own RK.

Well, I wrote this while I was supposed to be taking notes for biology, so I missed out learning about cellular respiration… Darn. I hope you're all happy! Lol. Just kidding.

So here's chapter 5. Enjoy it!

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_Why'd they have to leave me here? _Kaoru fumed. _Sure, my ankle's still a little sore, and yes, my head hurts a little when I move around, but I could have helped them!_ Shortly after Kenshin's departure, Megumi and Sano had announced that they had to go to work. She didn't know what to do. Surely Aoshi's servants had organized a search party by now. Why hadn't they found her? And who were these people she was staying with? Was it possible they were hiding her from Aoshi? Did they even know she was his wife? Regardless, she decided she would not tell them more than she had to.

Megumi had said that she should get some rest, but she felt like doing exactly the opposite. She got up and began to explore the house. She knew that in most farmer's houses the living quarters would double as the sleeping quarters, but she soon found out that this house had two bedrooms; presumably one for Sanosuke and Megumi and one for Kenshin, as well as the large room where they had eaten.

Kaoru picked up a broom, went out side, and began to sweep the courtyard. All in all, though it was a small house, it was very fine, and she wondered how simple farmers could afford it.

While she swept, she noticed a door near the back of the house. It wasn't the door to the bath or anything, she had already found that. The size of the house implied that there should be another room there, but it could not be entered from the inside of the house, and she grew curious. Leaning her broom against the wall, she walked over to the door. However, before she had managed to slide it open more than two inches, she was stopped by a firm hand grabbing her own.

She looked up to see Kenshin staring at her with stern eyes. "I would appreciate it if you kept your nose out of places it does not belong." She slid her hand out from under his, feeling the heat rise in her face. She took a step back and he closed the door with a firm click.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know it would offend you." She looked at the ground, hopping to hide her reddening face. He was so close to her she could see the stitching on his gi. She felt self-conscious, and knew the heat in her face was not just from her embarrassment at his sharp reprimand. The only time she had ever been this close to a man outside her own family was at her own wedding with Aoshi, but the married couple hadn't even slept on the same futon. She looked up to find his eyes still on her. "I'm sorry," She repeated. "It won't happen again." This seemed to be what he was looking for, and he turned away.

"Come with me; I'm supposed to get you lunch." She picked up her broom and followed him back into the house, feeling ashamed of her reaction to his nearness. "Megumi is busy. A young boy in the village broke his arm, and she cannot come here."

Kaoru sat down, but felt awkward at having him serve her. "Will you eat with me please? I don't like eating alone…" He gave her an odd look, but sat down. She smiled and served him a bowl of rice, along with the fish and pickes he had brought before serving herself. She noticed he had made a pot of tea, and she delicately poured him a cup. "Arigato." He said softly, bringing the cup to his lips.

The two ate in silence until Kaoru felt she would burst from all the questions bubbling up inside her. "Do you own this house, or does Sano and Megumi?" She asked suddenly.

Kenshin looked up, surprised, but said, "I own it, though they have lived with me for several years, and I would let them have it if I ever left."

"Are Sanosuke and Megumi married?" She inquired softly.

He took another sip of tea before answering. "Perhaps, in a way. They have lived together for several years, and I think they have always meant to have a ceremony, but have never gotten around to it."

"Is that considered disgraceful here?"

"Not as disgraceful as running away." He gave her a meaningful glance.

"Who said I was running away?" Kaoru asked angrily.

She thought she saw the traces of an amused smile on his face. "No one. But you yourself have just confirmed it." He set his chopsticks down. "What are you running from? Where do you belong?"

Kaoru clenched her fists on her lap. _Where do I belong?_ She wondered to herself. _My home is no longer mine, and I know I don't belong with Aoshi…_ "I don't belong anywhere." She whispered. He looked at her for a moment, as if considering her. She felt like he could see right through her, and it unnerved her.

"How long have you lived with Megumi and Sano?" She asked, changing the topic.

"A long time."

"Were you born here?"

"No."

Desperate for a real answer, she tried, "How did you get that scar?"

"You ask too many questions." He stood up and began to do the dishes.

Kaoru stood up as well. "I can do that, if you'd like…"

He gave her an annoyed look. "No. You're supposed to be resting. Go sleep." She sighed and was about to say something, but he cut her off. "Doctors orders. I'm going to be here doing some chores around the house, so I'll know if you're resting or not. Now go." She huffed off to the bedroom and undressed.

"He's almost as bad as Aoshi!" She grumbled, but suddenly was filled with the memory of his hand on hers, the way his auburn hair framed his fine features, how close they had been, how intoxicating his scent was… She shook herself. She had never experienced anything like that with Aoshi, her own husband. She wondered if she would experience what happened today with someone she loved, or if it would be the same as with Aoshi.

_No, _She decided, _it would be more like the way it was with Kenshin. Not that I'm in love with Kenshin!_ She thought quickly, _I've only known him for a day! But maybe, in getting to know this man, instead of being pushed into a sudden and unwanted wedding… This doesn't make sense at all! I don't know what I'm talking about!_ She sighed, unable to express her thoughts clearly, and threw herself onto the futon.

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Later that night, as Megumi and Sano lay in bed, Sano whispered softly, "Fox, Himura says he's sure that girl ran away. She probably is Aoshi's wife. You could have handed her over to that man without any trouble."

Megumi was quiet, remembering the man at the door. He hadn't said the girl's name, just that Aoshi's wife was missing, and he was looking for her. "Because I wasn't sure if it was her or not. And besides," She interrupted Sano's attempt at a protest, "She was in no condition to travel. I wouldn't have let them move her anyway."

Sano sighed and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Fine. Whatever'll happen will happen. I won't worry about it now." He planted a kiss on her forehead and went to sleep.

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I hope this was OK. Sorry if it's late, I haven't had a chance to up load it all day… And now I'm very sleepy… . I'm going to sleep, but you guys go ahead and review! G'night!


	6. Chapter 6

Aren't you glad I love you so much? I knew I couldn't get this chapter done by Wednesday, but I'm going to be gone for the weekend, and I didn't want to make you wait until Monday for an update. Aren't you happy? Well, if you aren't, you should be! I have a huge history project due tomorrow that I've done almost no work on, all because of this story! Lol. OK, here you go: go out into the world and read!

**Disclaimer: **I, sadly, do not own RK. But hey, a girl can dream, right?

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"Misao!" Misao looked up from the book she was reading in annoyance. It was Matsuda again. He was driving her crazy, and she hated it. "Misao!"

"What?" She yelled back angrily.

"Aoshi-sama has sent a reply! We were going to read it, but we thought you should see it first." He waved the letter in his hand, smiling happily. "Unless you don't mind if we go ahead and read it…" He began to peel the letter open, but Misao ripped it from his slimy grasp.

"No, I'd rather read it first, thank you. If there's anything you should know inside, I'll be sure to tell you." She huffed off to her room. It had been over a week since Kaoru's disappearance, and Misao was really starting to worry about her friend, however, her growing anxiety about her love letter to Aoshi was slowly starting to overshadow her concern.

After securely locking the door, she sat down and opened the letter. She took a deep breath and began to read.

_Dear Kaoru,_ it began.

Misao's worry suddenly turned to a mixture of relief, confusion, and curiosity.

_Dear Kaoru,_

_You have quite a way with words. Your letter stirred me in a way I can't explain. I must say that I was slightly put off when you told me you were writing to me only at the urge of the servants, however, you seemed to have something to say that perhaps need some encouragement. However, I want you to know that, although I perhaps have not always thought of you as my wife, I have never thought of you as a servant in my house. _

_Forgive me if I haven't been the most loving husband; I found it hard to express feelings of love for a girl I do not know. I had hopped that, perhaps, with time, we could grow to love each other, and it seems it has been long enough for you. I hope that you will help my own ability to love surface, as it has been dormant for some time. _

_I am sorry to say that my stay in Kyoto will be much longer than I expected. However, I would enjoy it if you would continue to write to me, if you wouldn't mind it horribly. _

_Aoshi_

Misao felt numb. _I shouldn't be reading this; this letter is intended for Kaoru…these are all his personal thoughts to Kaoru…_ Then she understood these were his personal thoughts for the writer of her letter. _He thinks I'm Kaoru!_ She realized quite suddenly.

She didn't know what to think. She knew she should fix this mess she had created, but could not bring herself to tell Aoshi that she, Misao, had written a love letter when she was supposed to be writing a letter of apology.

_And now he wants me to write back? _She frowned. _What should I do?_

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Kaoru had been away for over a week now, but her caretakers had not made many inquiries about where she came from. She didn't mind; she wouldn't have told them the truth anyway.

At her insistence for something to keep her occupied, she had been giving some house hold chores to do while they were away, but after one meal, they refused to let her cook. However, she was still bored, and found herself sitting around with nothing to do. She still wondered about the back room, but, per Kenshin's request, she had kept her distance.

"It's time for us to leave." Kenshin nodded to Sano and Megumi as Kaoru cleared the dishes.

"Can I come with you?" Kaoru begged, turning around quickly.

"No." Came Kenshin's curt reply. The other two were already out the door, and he turned to follow.

"Please?" She whined. "I'm bored stiff here!"

"No one has said you have to stay. Perhaps you should continue on to wherever you were headed."

Kaoru didn't miss a beat. "But I haven't repaid you for letting me stay here! At least let me make it up to you for helping me. Please? I feel like I need to earn my keep. I'm a hard worker, and I won't get in your way!"

Kenshin sighed and looked at Megumi and Sano walking down the path. "Fine. If you insist." He turned and walked out the door. Almost leaping for joy, she followed him out of the house for the first time in a week.

Once they had reached their destination, Kaoru was sent with Megumi to help plant seedlings. After a little instruction, she found that things here were done mostly the same as on her father's farm.

Thinking of her father saddened her somewhat. She hadn't realized how badly she had missed him, and her brother Yahiko, until now. She supposed there had been nothing to remind her of them with Aoshi, yet here, doing what she had done everyday with them, she thought of them.

Her thoughts of home were suddenly interrupted by a man's voice. "Hey, you there! You're not helpful if you just sit there!" She looked up, surprised, and noticed she had indeed been doing nothing, holding a seedling in her lap.

She turned to face the man who had reprimanded her and bowed very slightly. "I'm sorry, I must have gotten distracted. I didn't realize I had stopped working." She turned away from him and began to plant the seedling when he walked over and grabbed her arm, pulling her to her feet.

"I'm not through with you." He pulled her close, and she could smell the reek of sake on his breath, and his unshaven face gave him a frightening look. "You're pretty good looking. How about you come with me?" He gave her a lustful smile.

She could not help but curl her lip and pull away from him. "N-n-no thank you…" She stuttered, trying unsuccessfully to squeeze out of his grasp. The other women around her seemed uncomfortable, and a few threw out commands for Kaoru to let go, but no one made any real move to help her.

"Oh, come on. Don't be scared. I just wanna have a little fun…" He pulled her closer, until she felt as though she might faint from the horrid smell.

"Hey, let go of her!" She heard a familiar voice.

"What do you want with her, Sanosuke? You already have a woman. I just wanna play with her a little!" He jutted his hips into hers, and she gave a yelp, renewing her attempts to get away, when suddenly a firm hand grabbed her arm, and pulled her quickly but gently away from the drunken man.

"You will leave her alone." Kaoru found herself standing behind Kenshin. His posture was rigid, and if looks could kill, the other man would have dropped dead on the spot.

"Hi-Himura..." he sputtered. "I didn't know… She's you're woman? I wouldn't have, I didn't…" He backed away carefully, and Kaoru realized she was trembling.

Kenshin carefully slipped his hand into hers and led her away. "We're going home now." He said softly. Kaoru hard a whisper go through the crowd, and suddenly realized how her relationship with Kenshin must seem to everyone standing there. She felt her face redden, and she watched the ground as Kenshin guided her back to the house.

She felt safer once she was inside and breathed a sigh of relief, but Kenshin suddenly spun her around to face him. She yelped in surprise, and he glared daggers at her. "You can't even keep yourself out of trouble for one day!" He said angrily. "It's time you told me the truth. Your real name, where're you from, everything!"

Kaoru didn't know what to say. "Kenshin, it wasn't my fault! I-" She was cut of as he grabbed her wrists and pushed her against the wall.

"Tell me." He gritted his teeth, and Kaoru was sure she saw his eyes flash amber. She contemplated telling him the truth for half a second, but realized just as fast that she would be sent immediately back to Aoshi if she did.

"My name is Kamiya Kaoru. I'm…I was raised far away from here, but I ran away when my grandfather tried to marry me to a much older man. I that wasn't what I wanted for my life, so I left before the wedding could take place. Please don't… Don't make me go back." She met his gaze for a moment, and it seemed to soften. _At least it wasn't a complete lie._ She thought to herself.

She realized how close he still was to her; their bodies were almost touching. His hands were still on her wrists, holding them above her head, and pinning her to the wall. She felt slightly afraid, but this was different than with the man in the field. As if realizing what a provocative position they were in, Kenshin released her immediately. "Forgive me." He said softly, and walked away.

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Kaoru snapped her eyes open. After Kenshin had walked off, she had not known what to do. She had gone to her room to think things over, and had apparently fallen asleep.

She could hear Kenshin humming tunelessly in the courtyard, and decided to try to talk to him. Walking outside, she spotted him, kneeling in a corner. His blue gi was tied back, and he was hunched over something, though Kaoru could not tell what.

As she neared, he turned around and looked at her, clutching wet clothing in his hands. She stopped. "Kenshin, are you doing laundry?" She asked quizzically, and she thought she saw a smile playing on his lips.

"It would appear so." He turned back to his washing. "Did you need something?"

She sat down on an over-turned bucket next to him and sighed, resting her chin on her knees. "Do you normally do the laundry?"

"If it needs to be done." He did not look up, and she sighed. He glanced in her direction, and sat back on his heels. "Please forgive me for how I acted today. It was inappropriate. I know it wasn't your fault that you were assaulted, and I didn't mean to scare you more. I am very sorry, and I hope you can forgive me."

She didn't say anything for a moment. "It's fine." She rolled her head on her knees to look directly at him. "It's odd. Sometimes you seem very distant and cut off from the rest of the world, but then other times…I can't explain it." She flushed, feeling silly. "Would you like some help?"

She didn't expect him to take her up on the offer, but he nodded. "If you wouldn't mind, the clean clothes need to be hung up to dry."

Kaoru stood up and began to pin the clothes up. "Who was that man today?" She asked with a touch of anger in her voice.

"His name is Tanaka. He frequents brothels and bars, and, unfortunately, is used to getting what he wants."

"Oh." There was silence between them for a few minutes.

"How old are you, Kaoru?" Kenshin asked suddenly.

She looked at him for a moment, but continued to hang the damp clothes. "Seventeen. And you?"

"Twenty-seven. How old was the man you were supposed to marry?" He wrung out the trousers he was washing.

She thought quickly, finally deciding to simply double Aoshi's age. "Fifty-two." She smiled. "I think I prefer this form of questioning."

She heard a fain chuckle from Kenshin. "Did you have any siblings before you ran away?"

The question was like a knife in her heart. She knew it couldn't possibly hurt to tell Kenshin about Yahiko, but at the same time, it pained her immensely just thinking about him. She knew she would never see the boy again… "I had a brother, but…I lost him." She said softly, though her voice cracked anyway.

His soft rhythm of clothing on the washboard faltered. "I'm sorry."

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A couple of things:

**1.** In my rush to get this up, I didn't have a chance to proof read. I did to spell check and the like, but please forgive me for any errors you may see.

**2.** This isn't about to get really lemony doesn't allow that anyway) but that scene w/ Tanaka in the field has been playing out in my head all day, as well as that one where Kenshin has Kaoru up against the wall. Sorry if I offended anyone, I just felt like I had to get those out.

**3.** In response to the question of when this fic is set, I've decided it doesn't belong in the Meji or the Bakamastu. Since it _is_ an AU, I've decided, for plot purposes, that it's set in a sort of wartime, where skirmishes and such randomly break out between people, but we don't really have the Imperialists vs. the Shogunate.

**4.** I will be gone all weekend and won't be able to check this until Sunday night, so you should make me happy with lots of reviews!

Bye guys! Have a good weekend!


	7. Chapter 7

Ack, sorry to keep you guys waiting! Once again, in my rush to get this up, I haven't had time to proof read… we're lucky I got this one up at all, what with the writers block I've had…

I don't own RK.

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Misao read her letter once more, checking for any mistakes.

_Aoshi-sama,_

_I would be delighted to write to you, as long as you promise a prompt reply to my letters. _

_You mentioned your stay in Kyoto would be much longer than you expected; how much longer do you intend to stay? And, if you don't mind me asking, what is the business that keeps you? I miss you dreadfully, and I stay awake some nights, just thinking about you, and when I'll be able to see your face again. _

_I admit as well that I haven't always thought of you as my husband. It's almost as though we're childhood sweethearts who have forgotten each other, but I hope that some day, we'll remember who we are. _

_Please write back soon, but would you please address any future letters to my maid, Misao? It would make me feel better, knowing that no one else would be reading these letters. Arigato._

She left it unsigned again, allowing Aoshi to chose who it was from. She had been a little hesitant to write the part about _childhood sweethearts_, but she eventually decided that there was relatively little harm in it.

She had decided there would be a great deal of harm in continuing these letters to Aoshi, and that she needed to tell him the truth, but when she sat down to write to him, this is what came out. She sighed and went to find Matsuda.

"This is my reply to Aoshi-sama. Can you please send it to him?" Matsuda looked a little surprised, but said nothing. "I'm just thanking him for being so kind in his anger." She made up quickly.

"And what did he suggest we do about finding Kaoru?" Matsuda took the letter. "Does he have any ideas?"

"Umm…" Misao thought quickly, hoping it would seem like she was trying to remember what had been said in the letter. "He uh… He recommended that we check with her father to see if they have had any word from her." Matsuda seemed content with this, and walked off.

"What have I gotten myself into?" Misao questioned aloud.

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When Kaoru woke up, she noticed immediately that something was different. Kenshin wasn't there. Though he wasn't often sleeping in the corner when Kaoru got up, it felt like he wasn't there at all. It unnerved Kaoru that he wasn't there, but what unnerved her more was the fact that she could sense it.

She got up and dressed as quickly as she could before going out to breakfast, where she found only Sano and Megumi eating in silence.

"Where is Kenshin?" Kaoru asked, feeling slightly embarrassed that she was so worried.

Without looking up, Megumi answered, "He left early this morning for Kyoto on business. Come, sit down and eat."

Kaoru crossed the room and was served her breakfast. "What kind of business?" She wondered thinking of Aoshi.

"You are nosey, aren't you?" Megumi said with a smile, but didn't offer any real answer.

"When will he be getting back?" She asked.

"When he feels like it." Megumi replied.

The younger woman glanced at Sano. "Look Missy, it's not that we're just not telling you, we honestly don't know. And it's better that way, if you believe me." The three finished their breakfast in silence.

When Megumi and Sano got up to leave, Kaoru tried to follow them, but Sano stopped her. "Sorry, but Kenshin said you're not allowed to work today. He says he doesn't want you getting into trouble again, with out him there to help."

Kaoru crossed her arms, annoyed. "I can take care of myself. That's not fair."

Sano smiled. "Life ain't fair, Missy." He walked outside.

"Well, what am I supposed to do all day?" She was not happy about his whole situation. What right did Kenshin have to say she couldn't go work?

"I dunno," Sano replied. "Do laundry, chop fire wood, but whatever you do, _don't_ cook!" He chuckled and closed the door, while Kaoru fumed.

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After two weeks, Kenshin had still not returned, and Kaoru was contemplating murdering him if he didn't show up soon. _What is it with men and keeping me locked in a house while they're gone?_ She grumbled.

She had chopped more firewood than could be used in a month, everybody had clean clothes, the floors were polished, there were cleans sheets on the beds, and the courtyard showed no sign of ever having been unkempt.

True to her word, she had stayed out of the back room, but it tugged at her mind more and more with each passing day. _What harm could it possibly do just to have a little look around? _ She thought. _And besides, Kenshin probably won't be back until who knows when… He'd never know if I was in there._

So, one morning, after Megumi and Sano had left her alone once more, she tiptoed outside. She had to laugh at herself; there was no reason for her to try to be so careful. No one would see her.

Sliding the door open carefully, she peeked inside. Her eyes took a minute to adjust to the lack of light within, but she soon realized it was a practice room, much like the one Aoshi had converted form a shrine.

She stepped inside and noticed the differences between this room and Aoshi's. There were no storage spaces in this one, nowhere to keep swords or anything, and it was a bit smaller, but Kaoru didn't care. She was suddenly filled with a desire to find a sword and do more katas than humanly possible.

After a few minutes of searching in vain for a practice sword, she closed the doors and went to find an axe. She wondered why Kenshin had tried to keep her out of that room; it wasn't as though she had never seen him wearing a sword.

She found some bamboo near the gate, and cut off a part that was about the size of a sword. She tried to figure out why she hadn't thought to do this before; she could have done katas all day in the courtyard, and no one would have cared.

But now there was a room she could practice in! She smiled, happy to finally have something to do.

She soon lost herself in her katas, and had no idea how long she had been inside, nor did she particularly care. She fought with an unseen opponent, and she always came out victorious.

She was sweaty, and could have chosen better clothes to do this in, but she smiled and wiped her face. It almost felt like there was someone behind her, and she shivered. She turned around swiftly and brought down her bamboo rod onto the imaginary person behind her, only to connect with something.

"K-Kenshin!" She stuttered. He had brought his sword up to protect himself from her blow, and now looked at her with almost amber eyes. "W-w-where did you c-come from?"

He smiled, and she was suddenly frightened. This was not the Kenshin she knew. "I thought I told you to stay out of here?" He hissed. He pushed her away, and brought his sword down. She blocked it, but realized that he wasn't even trying to hit her. "Bamboo? Do you realize how easily a real sword could cut through your bamboo rod?" He sheathed his sword and sighed, closing his eyes. When he opened them, they were once again the familiar amethyst orbs. "It makes me sick to think how easily men can kill other men." He gave her a reassuring smile. "Now, would you care to tell me why you are in here?"

"I don't know." She muttered. "I just thought…"

"In the future, will you please keep your word, and stay out of here?" He took her hand and led her out, closing the door behind them. Kaoru could smell something on him, something mildly metallic and familiar, but she could not place it.

She didn't respond at first, as all she could think about was how warm his hand was, and how good it felt to have his wrapped around hers. She finally nodded, and whispered, "I'm sorry."

"Could you help me heat up the bath? It's a long way from Kyoto, and I'm tired. Ordinarily, I wouldn't ask you, but no one else is here." He said.

"Of course."

"I was also hopping I could convince you to make me something to eat." He let her hand fall. "And I'll have to do some washing later today…"

"Wouldn't you rather let me do the washing? My cooking is terrible…"

"No." he said firmly, then he chuckled slightly. "Besides, I don't mind your cooking."

"Really?" She smiled. "Alright, I'll go get some wood to heat up the bath, and then I'll get right on your lunch."

He smiled gently. "Arigato."

After he had finished bathing, Kenshin sat in the courtyard and did his laundry. When his meal was prepared, Kaoru went outside to get him, but the second she saw him, she felt a bolt of electricity go through her body. His wet hair dripped down into his face, and he wasn't wearing a shirt. She blushed. "Kenshin, your lunch is ready."

He looked at her and poured the water out of the washbasin. It was almost the color of dried blood, Kaoru noticed with a shiver, though she supposed dirt could have the same color. "Arigato."

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Funny that the chapter I can't proof read opens with Misao proof reading her letter… lol. OK, so, not the best of chapters perhaps, but there it is. Please review!


	8. Chapter 8

50 reviews? You make me feel so warm and fuzzy inside! I'll try my hardest to get the next chapter up by Saturday, ok?

Arg! I hate writers block so much! So, here we have exhibit A, the writers poor attempt at giving her loyal reviewers a chapter. It's pretty short, compared to the others, and isn't great… oh well. I bet you'll enjoy it anyway.

I don't own RK.

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Kaoru could not sleep. She tossed and turned for hours, but could not figure out what was keeping her awake. She sighed. "Kenshin, are you sleeping?" She asked, doubting she would get an answer.

A soft chuckle came from the corner where he slept; "I'm trying to, but you're making it very hard. What's on your mind?"

Startled, she rolled over to have a better look at him. His eyes were still closed, and he had not moved in the slightest; if she was not sure he had just spoke, she would have thought him to be asleep. "What were you doing in Kyoto?"

"I had business to attend to. You don't need to know any more than that."

She sighed, but knew she wouldn't more of an answer from him. "Why did you tell Sano I wasn't allowed to leave the house while you were gone?"

"I thought it might be easier that way. You seem incapable of staying out of trouble; I didn't want you getting hurt." He answered without stirring.

"I'm stronger than you might think." She said indignantly. "Besides, what power do you have to tell me I can't leave?"

"I have never said you can't leave. In fact, I've suggested on several different occasions that you be on your way, but you seem content to stay here. Since you are a guest in my house, you will obey my rules." Kaoru bit her lip, hopping she hadn't offended him.

"I'm sorry." She was quiet for a moment. "What's so special about that room? Why don't you want me in there?"

"You should never be in a position that you should know about that room." He still hadn't moved.

"Why? It's not as though I've never seen you with a sword."

"Many men carry swords, but how many of them really how to wield one? And how many farmers have practice rooms in their houses? Further more, how many farmers know enough about the sword to even need one?" He opened one eye and gave her a meaningful glace.

"What are you trying to say?" She heard a hint of fear in her voice.

"What do you think I'm trying to say?" Both eyes were open now.

"You smelled like something vaguely familiar when you came home today, but I couldn't figure out what it was. I know what it was now." How could she have forgotten? _There was a metallic tang in the air... The fast spreading puddle of dark liquid touched her straw sandals… Lifeless eyes looked up at her…_ "And it wasn't dirt you were washing from your clothes," She was shaking now. "It was blood!"

Was it just the way the moonlight glinted in his eyes that made them amber? "What are you going to do with this new discovery of yours?" His voice was harsher than it had been. "I'm warning you now Kaoru, I'm a dangerous man. Do not cross me."

She suddenly threw off her blankets and ran to the door. Her blood was pounding so hard in her ears she couldn't tell if he was following her or not, but she was more afraid than she had ever been, and she just wanted to get away. She knew several possibilities of her new findings, and she liked none of them.

Throwing the door open, she ran out into the courtyard to the gate. Just a few strides away from it, firm hands grabbed her shoulders and spun her around. She couldn't look at him. She was too frightened, and tears flowed freely from her eyes. "You want me gone, now let me leave!" She screamed. "Let go of me!" She struggled out of his grasp, but he grabbed her wrist.

"Kaoru, look at me." His voice was kind, but she shook with fear. She finally convinced herself to meet his gaze. Gentle eyes greeted hers. "I promise; I will never hurt you." It was all too much for the poor girl. A sob wracked her body and her vision swam as she collapsed into Kenshin's arms. 

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The next morning when she woke up, it was later than she expected. The sun was up, and Sano and Megumi were gone, but Kenshin was waiting for her at the table. As soon as she saw him, she felt her breath catch, and she turned to go back to her room.

"Kaoru, wait." He stood up, and she stopped. "I want to apologize for last night. I hope I didn't scare you too badly."

She looked at him as though he had gone crazy. "Kenshin, I've never been more afraid of anything in my entire life." She whispered.

"Why are you so afraid of me?" He crossed the room and tried to take her hand reassuringly, but she took a step back.

"Because… You…you killed someone." She could feel tears beginning to form again, but she blinked them back.

"So have many people Kaoru. In times like these, it's uncommon to meet anyone who doesn't have at least one man's blood on his hands. Forgive me for frightening you last night." He looked ashamed and gentle, not like some one who had killed another person.

"What makes you think I can forgive you?" She glared at him angrily.

He looked confused, then hurt. "I would never do anything to hurt you. Ever. I promise." His voice was soft, and Kaoru wanted so badly to believe him.

"How can I believe you?" How could she possibly even think about trusting this man? She knew she should go back to Aoshi as soon as possible, but something drew her to Kenshin, something forced her to stay.

He smiled sadly. "Because you have lived under the same roof as me for over a month, and if I had wanted to hurt you at all, I could have done so already."

That was very true. Kaoru needed to think. "Are you saying you want me to stay here?" She couldn't believe she had asked. What she found even harder to believe was that she wanted him to say yes.

He chuckled. "I haven't said that. It might be better if you did leave. I just wanted the chance to explain myself." He walked to the door. "I have to go now. Would you like to come?"

She shook her head. She wanted to stay here, safe and alone. Kenshin looked surprised. "Alright. I'll be back later." He started to close the door, but stopped. "Oh, Kaoru? Since you're going to stay, could you light a stick of incense for me in the back room? It smelled a little musty…" She saw the smile playing on his lips as he closed the door, and grinned.

"What am I doing?" She whispered to no one. "I should go. I should leave right now. I should go back to Aoshi… Misao must be worried about me, even if he isn't." But she stayed, standing by the door. She knew exactly the reason why, and it scared her.

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A short chapter, I know, and not very good, but I've stumbled upon some writers block, and I'm having trouble getting where I want to go right now.

Sorry for no update on Misao the chapter, but there will be more of her next week. Please review!


	9. Chapter 9

Ok, I don't have a good excuse for why I was gone for so long. That said, I will list them all to you: I was sick, I had opening weekend of my play, I had a couple of huge projects due… but mostly it was writers block. But, faithful readers, I will have you know that, fueled by Dr Pepper, I persevered. I wrote for three hours today when I should have been doing math home work, and my fingers are sore from all the typing, but I have a chapter!

Enjoy!

I don't own RK or Dr Pepper…except that big bottle of it I bought. I think I own that…

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When word came that Kaoru was not at her father's house, Misao was not surprised. She hadn't expected her friend to be there in the slightest, but had desperately needed to tell Matsuda something. She only hopped that she had not frightened Kaoru's family too much.

She felt badly that she had not been worried about Kaoru, but felt that if something had happened to the other girl, she would feel it. She was curious about where she had gone, though, and had decided to go search for Kaoru by herself. She hopped that she might have more luck finding her than Aoshi's servants had, but at the same time, part of her did not want Kaoru to come back, because she knew she would loose Aoshi is Kaoru returned.

She was also curious to know what was going on in Kyoto, as Aoshi's last letter had said he would be gone for at least another month, and, though he apologized profusely, Misao wondered if he was avoiding coming home to "Kaoru".

Sighing, she got out of bed and dressed. As much as she didn't want Kaoru to come home, she knew in her heart that she was being a terrible person, and it was her duty as a friend to find her. She had waited long enough. Misao smiled to herself. _Whether she comes home or not is her choice, though._

She went into Aoshi's library, looking for some maps of the surrounding area. Most were fairly old and only showed the area right around the house, but after some searching, Misao came across some newer ones that showed the land in full.

It took her a minute to locate the shrine where she had last seen her friend, and studied the surrounding countryside. Very little caught her interest; there was a gorge about a mile north, and Misao wondered with horror if her friend had fallen. She shook the thought from her head, choosing to believe her instincts instead.

She noticed there were several serf villages dotting the map, and saw there was one about three miles away from the shrine, hidden in a sort of valley. Suddenly, something Kaoru had said that night came back to her: _"Hey, those shadows down there almost look like people and houses, don't they? Though I doubt if anyone lives down there…"_

Misao stood up. She knew exactly where Kaoru was.

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Misao disguised herself as a nun and walked through the village begging for alms. She hopped she might get a feel of the village, even if Kaoru didn't appear. It was late afternoon, and though no one offered her a place to stay for the night, one man did invite her in for a cup of tea. She politely refused, but the man intrigued her; he had red hair and intense eyes. He frightened her slightly, but instincts told her to keep an eye on him.

Upon leaving the village, she walked for a mile or two, hoping to dispel any suspicions anyone had about her. She then left the trail and walked back through the woods until she could see the first house in the village. After a few minutes of searching, she found a thicket near a dry streambed, where she decided to set up camp. It was well hidden from the village; far enough away that she doubted they could see her cooking fire, but close enough that she could reach it with ease.

She didn't do much of anything the first day; she hid her supply pack, cleared an area for her bedroll and a fire, and snacked on some dumplings she had brought with her. Then she curled up and slept for a few hours until nightfall.

She woke up when it grew dark and changed her clothes. Climbing a tree that's branches rested on the nearest house, she moved noiselessly to the roof. After poking her head over the side to gauge where the people might be in the house, she moved around until she could hear them comfortably.

She caught snippets of their conversation; it was mostly about crops. Misao cursed herself inwardly for taking so long, because she knew if Kaoru was here, her coming was old news, and she doubted that people would still be discussing her arrival. But, she reasoned, she could listen for Kaoru's voice in these houses, and find her that way. However, that would take a good amount of time, and Misao could not necessarily guaranty that it was truly her friend's voice she heard through the roofing and not another's.

She decided instead to wait until morning. These people were farmers; Misao had seen it on the map. They would most likely rise early to go to their fields, and the girl guessed that Kaoru would be among them. _If she isn't, _Misao thought, _I can always search the empty houses!_ Feeling better about her plan, she went silently back to her camp and slept.

She awoke early the next morning, before dawn. Rubbing her eyes, she stole a quick glance at the map to decide where the best place to spy on the farmers going to work would be. She chose her place and took a bit of dried meat with her to munch on.

After some waiting, the houses began to stir with life. The sun came and chased the cool mists of morning away, and slowly men and woman walked from their houses. The spot she had chosen was in a thick clump of trees near the path to the fields. She listened to everyone's conversation as they passes, eyes recognizing the people from the day before, but searching for Kaoru.

She saw the red headed man with the cold eyes and straightened up. There was something odd about him; not just the fact that he was far scrawnier and shorter than any of the other farmers, but something else. Something Misao couldn't place.

He was with two others; a very tall man with a red bandana and a woman who looked as though she belonged somewhere far more elegant. Their conversation came floating towards her. "She won't be happy about this, you know." The tall man was speaking.

"I know." Replied the smaller man. "But it's not as though I have a choice. I can't just change my life for every woman that waltzes into my life." The other two chuckled softly, but Misao was suddenly listening very intently. _A woman waltzed into his life recently?_

"How long will you be gone for this time?" The tall man again. _The redhead is leaving? But where would he go? And he leaves often… there's something fishy about this…_ Misao pondered this for a moment.

"About-" They were passing right in front of the trees now, and the redhead stopped suddenly. His friends stopped a few strides later when they noticed he wasn't moving anymore.

"What is it?" The woman.

Misao could not move in fear. She felt suddenly as though she was made of ice. _He knows I'm here…_She thought. She could feel his eyes on her, and felt as though they saw not just her body hidden in the trees, but her very soul. She wanted to run or to scream, but he looked away suddenly, and began to walk again.

"I'll be gone for three weeks this time." The three passed on, followed by several others who chatted noisily, but Misao was no longer listening. A cold sweat had broken out on her forehead.

She shook herself mentally, trying to convince herself that she was over-reacting. He hadn't seen her. She knew he couldn't have. She was too well hidden. He must have just heard a bird on a nearby branch, she reasoned. But his eyes… She banished the notion from her head.

It didn't matter anymore. She was almost certain that Kaoru was with these three, though there must be something wrong with her, if she wasn't working in the fields with them. Or, maybe they're keeping her there… Misao thought about it, but decided that, as frightening as the man's eyes may be, they were not keeping Kaoru against her will.

As soon as the flow of people to their jobs had stopped, Misao jumped from her hiding place, and moved towards the house she had met the redhead at yesterday, hiding in the shadows.

A wall surrounded his house, and Misao did not want to just walk in through the front gate. She wanted to be sure Kaoru was at this house before she announced herself, so, once again, she climbed up a tree near the back of the wall.

The tree's branches hung into the courtyard, and Misao went out as far as she dared on the week limbs, searching for any movement inside the house.

"Misao?" The voice startled her so badly that she nearly jumped out of her skin. The tree cracked and she tumbled down into the courtyard, where she landed on something soft, but holding a broom.

"Kaoru!" She stood up and dusted herself off, trying to hide her red face. That was the reason she hadn't seen her friend; the girl had been right under her! She gave an embarrassed smile; she had rather been hoping to have to play hero, and that her friend was tied up somewhere inside, not just walking around in the open.

"Misao, what are you doing here?" Kaoru asked as she was helped to her feet.

"I'm looking for you!" Misao said angrily. Kaoru laughed, and Misao noticed she looked very happy.

"Come inside." Kaoru said. "I'll make you some tea, and you can tell me what's going on."

The younger girl complied, hardly believing her good luck in finding her friend on a hunch.

The two girls joked and laughed for a while, until Misao finally felt she had to come clean about the letters to Aoshi. Kaoru was silent for a moment, the said, "So, he is the man you told me about, then? He's your sweetheart?" Misao felt instantly better.

"Yes, I'm almost certain. But what about you? You're not angry with me? I mean, he is your husband…" Misao replied.

"I know…" Kaoru sighed. "But I don't love him, and you do. You can have him. Besides," She whispered softly. "I think I may love some one else…"

"But Kaoru," Misao insisted. "He's going to come home soon and realize you aren't there, and that I've been writing letter to you this whole time, and I'll be in huge trouble, and you'll be brought back, and… and…and…" She trailed off.

"Don't worry too much about it." Kaoru took a sip of her tea.

"Don't worry about it? Kaoru, all I can do, night and day is worry about it!" She stood up angrily. "I know I got myself into this mess, but it doesn't make matters any better that you're off sleeping with someone else and-"

Kaoru jumped up too and nearly slapped Misao. "How dare you! I never said I was sleeping with anyone! Why would you make that presumption? Just because I love him doesn't-" She bit her lip and lowered her voice. "Doesn't mean he loves me back."

Misao looked at her friend. "Who is he?"

Kaoru got a sort of sad, dreamy look in her eyes. "Well, his name is Himura Kenshin. He has red hair, and I think he's some sort of…I don't know… He's killed people."

Misao felt her jaw drop. She knew exactly who Kaoru was talking about. That man… Something had seemed odd about him… He killed people! She felt the color drain from her face, and she moved her mouth, hoping if she did, she might be able to regain the ability to speak.

"I didn't want you to worry. I wasn't going to tell you, but…it just sort of came out." Kaoru shrugged. "Misao, stop that. You look like a fish."

Misao found her voice. "Come on Kaoru." She grabbed her friend's arm and began walking towards the door. "We're leaving. Right now. I can't in good conscience let you stay here. Living with a murderer! I thought you had some sense Kaoru, but I must have been wrong. And you think you love this man!" She laughed hoarsely. "What-why-how…" She sputtered, falling back into her silent blabbering.

"Misao let go of me." Kaoru shook her friend off. "Please," She pleaded. "Please Misao? I'm happy here. I don't know if I was even this happy when I still lived with father and Yahiko. Misao, I feel wanted here. I want to stay!" Misao could see tears in her friend's eyes and sighed.

"And how long do you think Aoshi will let you stay here once he gets back? And what happens when this Kenshin guy goes and murders you too? What sort of fairy tale are you living in Kaoru? Wake up!" Misao yelled.

Kaoru smiled gently. "You know as well as I do that Aoshi doesn't want me. He'll probably be glad I'm gone. Besides, he has you." Kaoru met Misao's eyes. "And I've lived with Kenshin for almost two months, and he hasn't done anything to hurt me. He's scared me a little at times, sure, but he's never hurt me.

"It almost like he has two different men inside him. There's the Kenshin who's gentle and kind, and he's the one I think I love. But then there's this whole other person almost… I can't explain it. It's not Kenshin anymore. He becomes cold and aggressive, and he eyes get to be this weird color, and…I think that's who kills people. Does that make any sense?" Misao looked at her friend for a moment to make sure she was serious, then shook her head.

"Look Kaoru, you're almost 18. You're married. You don't live with your husband, but that's beside the point. I can't make you come back, and I can't make your decisions for you. If you don't come back, heads may roll, and I'm not just speaking figuratively. Please, think about this Kaoru." Misao touched her friend's shoulder. "I don't want you to get hurt."

Kaoru smiled. "I've already thought about it. I'm not leaving." Misao sighed in exasperation. "Look, I'll make you a deal: if things get really bad around here, I come back. If things get really bad there, come and get me. But other wise, I'm staying here. Is that alright?"

Misao sighed again. She knew it was the most she would get. "I guess so. But be careful." She walked to the door.

"Don't worry, I will. Oh, and Misao!" Kaoru called after he friend. "Give Aoshi my regards!"

"Oh, ha-ha, Kaoru, you're a riot!" Misao closed the door and smiled. _Well, she's alright for now… And at least she's happy…_ The younger girl shook her head. "I can't believe you, Kaoru." She muttered under her breath.

She returned to Aoshi's house later that night, and had to tell Matsuda that she had been fruitless in her search for Kaoru. She wrote another letter to Aoshi and cried herself to sleep.

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As Kaoru lay in bed that night, listening to Kenshin's breathing, she wondered if Misao had been right, and it was only a matter of time before the man turned on her.

"Kaoru?" The voice startled her.

"Yes?" She replied tentatively.

"There was a young woman looking for you today… I trust she found you?" Kenshin's voice was gentle. He wasn't angry about it. Kaoru breathed a sigh of relief.

"Yes. How did you know?" She rolled over to look at him, but he was as he always was; leaning against the wall, eyes closed, sword in his lap.

"I guess you could say I saw her." He chuckled softly. "Kaoru, there's something I wanted to tell you. I'm leaving again in the morning, and I just wanted to say good bye before I left."

"Oh." Kaoru was confused by her feelings; happy that he wanted to say good-bye, but sad that he was leaving again. "For how long?"

"A few weeks. I should be gone longer than last time, but you may leave as long as you are with Sano. I don't want you to feel like a prisoner again."

Kaoru smiled. "Thank you! Thank you…" She felt much better about his leaving, but knew she would still miss him. She rolled over and closed her eyes. "Good night Kenshin."

She didn't see it, but he opened one eye to look at her for a moment. "Good night Kaoru."

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So, since Misao wasn't mentioned in the last chapter, she got a little adventure of her own. Tell me what you thought of it! I promise I won't take so long with the next chapter. I think I'm almost out of my writer's block now, which is good!

Please review!


	10. Chapter 10

Hello all, and welcome back to the too long prolonged 10th chapter! It's time for another exciting question and answer time!!!!

**Question:** Where have you been???

**Answer:** Uh… here and there? Hehe, remember when I told you I was almost out of my writer's block? Well, I wasn't quite as almost as I would have liked. It turned out that some things in my life became slightly more important at the time, and I sort of drifted away from though fear not, gentle readers! You were always in my thoughts! Um, but not in a creepy way.

**Question:** Are you back for good?

**Answer:** I sure hope so. I can't guarantee that a catastrophe like the one that happened last year won't ever happen again, but if all goes according to plan, then yes.

**Question:** Will you be updating next week?

**Answer:** But of course!

**Question:** Do you own characters, rights, or anything otherwise pertaining to RK?

**Answer:** no… :sigh:

**Question:** Do you have a present for your faithful readers?

**Answer:** I do indeed! I made it extra long for your reading pleasure. Be forewarned though, it has a fair amount of blood. However, if you have no aversions to such things, then read on!!

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Kaoru could feel warm sunlight on her face and opened her eyes. She felt a sinking feeling in her stomach as she remembered Kenshin was not there. She squeezed her eyes closed and rolled over, wishing that Kenshin would be sitting in his corner, waiting for her to wake up as always.

But he wasn't, and Kaoru forced herself to get out of bed and dressed herself. She walked out and found Megumi serving breakfast to Sano, who sat chewing a fish skeleton. "Hello Missy," he said with a grin.

"How'd you sleep last night?" Megumi asked lightly.

"Alright, thank you," Kaoru replied, seating herself beside Kenshin's empty spot.

The three made light conversation as they ate, and Kaoru said nothing about Kenshin, though her insides were burning to know what he was doing.

"Kenshin…um…said I could go with you today," Kaoru said suddenly. "If you don't mind."

Megumi looked slightly startled, but Sano nodded. "Yep. Just don't go getting yourself into too much trouble today; I have a lot to do." He winked at her and she blushed, remembering her previous excursion.

When they reached the field, Sano waved and headed off to help mend a fence, leaving Megumi and Kaoru to pull weeds. Kaoru didn't let herself get distracted this time, and she spent several hours pulling unwanted growth from the beds. She was surprised to see how large the crops had gotten, but knew she shouldn't be, as she hadn't left the house in over two months.

"Would you like some water?" Megumi asked after a while.

As the two made their way over to the well, Kaoru thought to herself that Megumi, even streaked with mud and sweat, looked far too elegant to be in a place like this. "Megumi-san, if you don't mind me asking, where are you from?"

Megumi looked at Kaoru sternly for a moment, then decided there was no harm in telling her. "I used to live in Tokyo,"

Kaoru's eyes widened. "Really? What was it like there?"

Megumi smiled smugly. "It was very different than here. It was lively and colorful and there was hardly a dull moment." Kaoru thought she saw a trace of remorse flicker across Megumi's face.

"You miss it, don't you?"

"Yes, well," Megumi sighed. "Some times we have to make sacrifices."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, when I met Sano, I was in a bit of trouble," She grimaced and Kaoru did not ask her to elaborate, though she was instantly filled with curiosity. "And Sanoske was already a very prominent street fighter, and by the time he helped get me out of my…predicament, we had both made several enemies. We decided our only option was to leave, at least for a while. Sano said he had an old friend that we could stay with, so that's how we ended up with Kenshin." She sighed again. "I've always wanted to go back."

"Maybe someday you will," Kaoru said gently as Megumi handed her a cup of water.

"I don't think-"

But she was interrupted by a loud laugh. "Himura's woman, eh?" They turned around to see Tanaka, who appeared to have vomited on himself, but was slightly more sober than he had been last time.

"Leave her alone, Tanaka," Megumi warned, placing herself between Kaoru and the drunken man.

"Oh, get out of my way," He said as he shoved Megumi roughly aside. "Himura's not here to help you now, is he?" He smiled as he grabbed her.

"Get off of me!" She yelled, twisting away from him. He looked a little surprised, but regained what little composure he had left.

"Oh, you wanna play, then?"

"Tanaka…" Megumi said.

"Oh, shut up, woman!" He growled, rounding on her. Kaoru used his momentary distraction to her advantage. Spotting a large stick on the ground, she quickly grabbed it and lifted high above her head like a sword. "You just stay out of this," Tanaka continued, "And mind your own-" There was a sickening crack as Kaoru broke the stick over his balding head.

He seemed frozen for a moment, before turning around to view Kaoru, who had a murderous gleam in her eye. "I don't need Himura here to help me," She said with conviction.

Tanaka waddled off as quickly as he could manage without falling on his face, blubbering about women.

Megumi watched him go, before looking at Kaoru for a moment, then broke out in laughter. Kaoru joined her, feeling as though she had finally proved her worth.

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Over the next two weeks, Kaoru grew happier and happier; she worked hard in the field, laughed with Sano and Megumi, and better yet, heard no word from Misao, which meant that all was well up at the house, at least for the time being. The only thing that could complete her feeling of happiness was Kenshin's return.

Then one night, as she lay sleeping, she was roused by a strange noise. She sat up in bed, wondering if she had been dreaming. It was hard to tell over the noise of the rain and thunder, but no, there it was again; it sounded as though the gate was open and banging on the fence. _How did it get open in the first place?_ She wondered. _I made sure I locked it when we came home. Well, I suppose the wind could have blow it open or it could be Kenshin, but he's not due back for another week, and it would be unlike him to be back early. _

Then she began to hear footsteps. They were very slow and deliberate, but Kaoru was sure she heard them, because they made quite a different noise than the _plip-plop_ of the rain. Determined to find out what was happening, she stood up and grabbed the bamboo sword she now kept in her room. _Who's out there? _She thought as she tiptoed quietly to the front entrance. _Oh, if it's Tanaka sneaking around here, I'll give a scare!_

She stood with her back to the wall, listening. As the footsteps grew closer, she could hear labored breathing. A shiver ran through her spine as she heard the breather stumble and groan. She chose this moment to fling open the door and attack the intruder.

"Kenshin?" She gasped. It was a mistake. She knew it as his amber eyes fixed wickedly on her, and he flung himself forward, pointing his sword at her throat. He looked so fierce with his teeth clenched and his wet hair clinging to the sides of his face, that she hardly recognized him. She felt her lip tremble, but held her head high. After all, this was Kenshin, and he promised he would never hurt her.

Suddenly, he let out a low moan and doubled over in pain. The smell of blood hit her like a metallic wave.

"Kenshin? Kenshin, what is it?" Kaoru asked franticly. "Let me see."

It was hard to tell in the dark, but Kaoru was almost positive there were dark stains on his pants and gi. "Kenshin, what is that?" she pointed, but she knew immediately. "Is that your blood?" Kaoru moved to grab a light, but Kenshin moved faster, and again had his sword at her throat.

"Don't move," Hissed a voice she did not recognize.

"I'm just going to get a light. You can come with me if you like," She said calmly. He followed her quietly, sword drawn, water dripping off him to the floor.

She walked slowly down the hall to where she knew Megumi kept a candle for emergencies (namely Sano coming home late), lit it and turned to face Kenshin.

"There, see, it's-" She dropped the candle and screamed, but no sound came out, for Kenshin had clapped his hand firmly over her mouth. He pushed his sword to her neck.

"No…noise…" He gasped. She nodded to show she understood, and he removed both hand and sword. Kaoru felt her knees tremble, and she had to lean against the wall to keep herself standing.

When she had turned around, she had seen Kenshin holding his side where it looked as though someone had tried to cut him in half. Blood poured down his leg, staining his pants a deep crimson. There were puddles of blood on the floor behind him, and his face looked pale and sickly.

"I…I'll go and get…Megumi…you…wait here…" She whispered.

"No. I don't…want…" he hissed.

"Kenshin, you're injured. You need Megumi. I… I don't know what to do for you. She can help you." Kaoru pleaded.

"Help…me…" He said as his eyes rolled into his head and he fell forward.

"Kenshin!" Kaoru just managed to catch him in time. She rolled him over. "Kenshin! Kenshin, can you hear me?" His eyelids fluttered and his eyes were soft and amethyst.

"Kaoru…" He whispered.

"I'm here Kenshin. I'm going to take you to your room. Can you stand? I don't think I can carry you." He nodded, and she put his arm over her shoulder, and helped him hobble to his room where she laid him out on the bed.

"Now, wait here. I'll get Megumi," She stood to leave, but Kenshin grabbed her hand with a very strong grip considering his current state.

"Don't…leave," He pleaded.

"Kenshin, I've got to. You need help!" Why wasn't he letting her go?

"Stay…with me," He gasped.

Kaoru felt like she was going to cry. She knew he couldn't keep bleeding like this or he would surely bleed to death. "Alright, let me get something to stop the bleeding," She rushed to grab a spare kimono, which she began to tenderly wrap around his side. When she had to lift him, however, to get it under him, he cried out in pain. He took a deep shuttering breath, and closed his eyes.

"Kenshin?" He did not answer. She held her hand over his mouth and nose to feel for a breath. There was not the slightest stir of air. "_Megumi!_" She screamed and ran through the house. Just as she got to Sano and Megumi's room, the door flew open, and a very disheveled Megumi looking as though she'd just seen a ghost.

"What? What is it? Kaoru, you're covered in blood! What happened?"

Kaoru began to sob as Sano appeared behind Megumi. "K-k-Kenshin… He's… there's blood everywhere!"

Megumi slapped her. "I'm sorry Kaoru, but I need you to pull yourself together. I'm going to need your help. He's in his room?" Kaoru sniffled and nodded, wiping tears from her eyes. "I need you to boil some water. Sano, bring me my bag." Kaoru turned towards the kitchen but Megumi stopped her. "Bring me candles. As many as you can find. I'm going to need all the light I can get, understand?" Kaoru nodded and lit the fire before running around the house and bringing all the lights she could find to Kenshin's room.

Kaoru didn't see much, and tried not to ask many questions for fear of distracting Megumi, but Megumi did tell her that she would need Kaoru's help, but that she was currently just trying to stop the bleeding, and no, Kenshin had not yet regained consciousness.

When the water had boiled, Kaoru was instructed to separate it into two bowls, and to stir salt into one. "We'll wash out his wound with that one," Megumi said briskly. "Are you ready? I need you to hold his shoulders while I pour this on him, alright? Make sure he doesn't move around, or he could make it worse," Kaoru nodded.

"Alright," Megumi braced herself and pulled back the padding Kaoru had wrapped around him. The older woman had already cut off Kenshin's gi, leaving his wound exposed. Kaoru blanched. "Are you going to be sick? Megumi asked gently. Kaoru shook her head, and the doctor looked surprised. "Well, good. We can't have you throwing up on our patient, now can we?"

Kaoru took a deep breath. A section of Kenshin's side appeared to have been sheered off. It was about an inch deep and extended roughly from his rib cage to his hip. A piece of flesh hung limp at the end; obviously his attacker hadn't severed it completely. _I haven't seen this much blood since… Well, no use thinking about that now. _

"Alright, have you got him?" Kaoru grasped him firmly by the shoulders. "Well, here we go…" Megumi tipped the bowl of slat water onto Kenshin's side, pouring it slowly. Kenshin writhed in pain, but Kaoru held him tightly.

"It's alright, we're taking care of you Kenshin. You're going to be fine," She whispered.

"Kaoru…" He moaned.

"Yes Kenshin, I'm here, it's alright," She said softly.

"Good, keep talking to him," Said Megumi. "Well, it's not as bad as I thought, though it's still pretty bad." She reached into her large black bag and pulled out a pair of scissors. "Who ever did this at least made it a clean cut for us, but this bit of skin here is dead. It looks to me like this is a few days old. It would appear he had some one treat it, or treated it himself, but it started bleeding on his way back,"

"I don't care," Kaoru said. "Just fix him!"

Megumi looked slightly taken aback, but regained her composure. Kaoru thought she saw a flicker of amusement cross her face, but didn't care. She busied herself with gently stroking Kenshin's hair out of his eyes. He winced as Megumi's scissors snipped too close to his living skin, but his eyes were glazed and Kaoru couldn't get him to say anything.

"Damn it, the water's cooled-Sano!" Megumi cried.

"Already got it, Fox," he said as he brought in another batch of steaming water. "How is he?"

"We'll see. Can you go get me more bandages? Then I'll need you back here; we have to sit him up to wrap them around him, and I want to make sure he doesn't fall,"

While they waited for more bandages, Megumi began to make a poultice, soaking the bandages in the boiling water before applying foul smelling salves.

When Sano returned, they tried propping Kenshin up, much to his displeasure. He struggled and cried out in pain, but Sano held his arms up while Megumi wrapped the bandages around the better part of hit torso and Kaoru continued to stroke his hair and whisper that everything would be alright.

"Done!" Megumi finally cried, and Sano and Kaoru eased Kenshin back onto the futon. "Well, he's lost a lot of blood, but I think he might make it. We just have to keep his wound clean and make sure he doesn't over exert himself.

"Sano you can go to bed… Kaoru, I would suggest you find somewhere else to sleep tonight, I would suggest by the fire. I'll find another futon for you tomorrow, but I just don't have the energy tonight, especially now that I have to keep an eye on Himura."

Kaoru nodded and she and Sano left Megumi and her patient. As the crossed to the door, Megumi said, "Kaoru, you surprised me tonight. You…I didn't think you had it in you. I couldn't have done it with out you, though. Arigato."

Kaoru bowed and left the room. Sano found her a blanket, and she curled up by the embers of the fire, but she could not sleep. The thunder had grown louder, and whenever she closed her eyes, she could see the glint of his sword and his yellow eyes gleaming haughtily in the darkness.

But soon exhaustion took its toll, and she fell into a fitful sleep. She dreamt she was small again and walking through town with her mother. There was a crowd gathering, and her mother led her over to see what was going on. "Oh Kaoru-chan, don't look," Her mother said as they got closer. "Come on, let's go," but it was too late; she saw, and she stood, petrified in horror.

A man was beheaded in the street, and there was a metallic tang in the air. The fast spreading puddle of dark liquid touched her straw sandals, staining them. His head rolled towards her, and his lifeless eyes looked up at her. She screamed as his face became her own, and Kenshin walked calmly over, blood-covered sword resting on his shoulder, and picked up the head. "I'm a dangerous man, Kaoru," he hissed, yellow eyes boring into her soul. "Kaoru!" He cried.

"Kaoru, wake up!" That wasn't Kenshin's voice at all! She sat bolt right up in bed, confused. "Oh, good, you're awake," Megumi said.

"What is it?"

"Kenshin's woken up, and he refuses to let me stay in the room, but he keeps asking for you," Megumi looked very disgruntled. "In fact, he even started to threaten me, because I told him I didn't want you in there."

Kaoru, mind still foggy with sleep, was having trouble understanding. "So what do you want me to do?"

"Get up, and go keep an eye on him for me. He won't let me near him; he even threw a bowl at me, which is very unlike him." She frowned. "If he wants you in there with him and not me, fine. I'd rather sleep anyway," She stood up and walked toward her room.

"Megumi-san, can I call you if anything happens?" Megumi gave a curt nod and walked away.

Kaoru walked quietly toward her room and opened the door. "Kaoru?" Came a hoarse voice, and she saw in the gloom that he had propped himself up in bed.

"Yes, Kenshin?" She mad her way across the room and knelt by his side. "How are you feeling?"

He lay back down. "Better now," He said, and Kaoru blushed.

She could feel herself ready to burst with hundreds of questions, but knew he needed his rest. "You should sleep now, Kenshin. If you need anything I'll be right here,"

"I had to come back," he whispered. "…had to see you…"

"Shh Kenshin. It's alright," She reached out to stroke his hair.

"…had to tell Aoshi-san…" Kaoru felt heart skip a beat and an icy shiver passed through her.

Kenshin closed his eyes and sighed, but Kaoru felt weak. _Kenshin has to talk to Aoshi? _Suddenly, the events of the night and exhaustion took their toll, and poor Kaoru fainted into a peaceful sleep.

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Kaoru awoke sometime in the night when the thunder had stopped and dawn's grey light was still hours away. She was so warm, but something seemed strange. As she shifted on her futon, she felt something and realized what was wrong

Kaoru rolled over to see Kenshin right beside her, their legs tangled under the blankets. Her heart fluttered and she felt her face flush. She was in bed with Kenshin. She had a strange feeling in the base of her stomach as she studied his face. His eyes were closed but twitched every so often, while his mouth was opened slightly, and she could hear him breathing. Tiny beads of sweat dotted his upper lip and forehead, and his hair hung limp, framing his face in a sea of red.

Her eyes fixated on his left cheek. _How did you get that?_ She wondered, not for the first time, as she extended a hand and traced one of the two slices that marred his face.

He seemed to wince, and Kaoru drew her hand back suddenly as he moaned, "_Tomoe…my love…"_

_What?_ Kaoru panicked. She felt sick to her stomach. _Tomoe…who's she?_ Kaoru's mind raced. Then it hit her. _She must be…they must be…_ "Oh, I've been so foolish!" she whispered, squeezing her eyes closed so the hot tears of shame that threatened to pour out were momentarily trapped.

Kenshin moaned again, and Kaoru opened her eyes fleetingly to look at him. He was looking back at her. "It's alright Kenshin, go back to sleep," She said softly, and he nodded and closed his eyes.

She waited until she was sure he was sound asleep before quietly moving to the closet to get a spare blanket, then curling up in Kenshin's usual corner. _How did I ever think he could love me?_ She thought bitterly before silently crying herself to sleep.

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Soo…

Whatdidjathink??

Was it long enough for you? I sure hope so, because it took me a long time to write.

So, if you would be so kind as to press the little button that says review and let me know what you think, I'd love to hear your opinion.

Ah, 'tis good to be back!


	11. Chapter 11

Hello again everyone! See, I'm here, as promised! You would not believe my joy when I realized I had 84 reviews! Thank you sooooo much!!!

My cousin gave me the first 31 episodes of RK (which is up to the point where her leaves for Kyoto) and I've been watching them non-stop fo the past couple days. Now I don't know what to do with myself because I want to watch the rest, but he hasn't given me those yet! Wahhhh…

Oh well. At least I'll have some inspiration while I'm working on my story!

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When Kenshin awoke the next morning, he found himself in a rather strange position. He was sleeping in a bed. When he tried to sit up, he found it rather painful, and noticed the bandages around his middle.

"Kenshin?" He started, but it was only Kaoru. He noticed that she sat in his corner, his sword by her feet and smiled inwardly. They were the opposite of themselves. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine, thank you," He sat up, this time prepared for the pain.

"Please, lay back down. I'll go get you some breakfast," Her eyes were red and puffy, and her usually tidy hair was unkempt.

"Kaoru, I wanted to talk to you-"

"I think there should still be some left-"

"-about last night-"

"-otherwise I could make you something myself-"

"-I just wanted to tell you-"

"-because I know everybody else hates my cooking-"

"-Kaoru, please-"

"-but you told me you don't mind it, so-"

"-Listen to me!" Kenshin finally made himself heard over Kaoru's babbling.

She gasped, feeling tears threatening, and, before she could stop herself, she blurted out "Where did you get that scar? And who is Tomoe?"

Kenshin stood up to face her with a hard look in his eyes. "Who?" He whispered. His voice was not unkind, but she knew she was walking a thin line.

"Tomoe," She said again.

"Kaoru, you have my undivided attention." His voice was suddenly ice cold, and Kaoru wished she had never brought it up. "Who told you about Tomoe?"

"No one. I mean-well, you did. Last night. You were talking in your sleep," He visibly relaxed.

"I see. Tomoe was my wife."

Kaoru looked at him scrupulously. "'_Was'?"_

He gave her a stern look. "Would you like me to tell the story, or not?" She was abashed, but waited patiently for him to continue.

"I suppose…Oh, this really is going to take a long time… I can't convince you that this should wait for a later time-" She shook her head. "-No, I thought so. Well, I suppose I'll really be answering both of your questions. You may want to sit down.

"As you have realized by now, Kaoru, I have killed. I think you should know that I am an assassin, and I have been for many years. I work for a man named Shinomori Aoshi, and his rebel group." Kaoru's eyes widened in shock. "Some time ago, when a different man was the leader, I killed a young man by the name of Kiyosato. Of course, I did not know that then; all I knew was that he was a bodyguard of a more important political figure, who was my target. Everything went according to plan, except one thing: Kiyosato was very stubborn and refused to die. He even managed to wound me; a slash across my cheek, before I killed him. This incident would hardly stand out in my mind, except that I am rarely wounded. My style of swordsmanship is simply too fast for most to touch me, but he managed it. And stranger still, the wound would not heal. For weeks and weeks, I had a trickle of blood down my face at all times.

"Sometime later, I was attacked by an assassin sent specifically to kill me. I managed to kill him, rather violently, but when I had done so, I noticed a woman standing across the street. She had seen the whole thing, and I wondered at first if I should kill her too, but she was very drunk and passed out into my arms. I took pity on her, and took her back with me to the inn where our group resided at that time in Kyoto, where she stayed, as she was given a job there. She told me her name was Tomoe, but she didn't tell me much else. Not that I cared to ask, of course. I have always felt it is rather foolish for me to get to know people because of my line of work, as I may be killed at any given time, and attachments would get in the way." He looked at the floor for a moment, then continued.

"However, we were betrayed, and forced to flee. Tomoe was with me at the time, and our leader told me we were to go into hiding until further instruction. We were to be husband and wife.

"We lived together, happily enough. No, to be truthful, up to that point, those were the happiest days of my life. Then one morning, Tomoe was gone. Desperate for answers, I read her diary. I found that she had been engaged to Kiyosato,, and had decided to take her revenge by helping to kill me. I was confused; I thought she loved me, but I realized it must have all been a trick. I went after her.

"I followed her up a mountain and encountered several men, all placed in hopes of killing, or at least weakening me, before I reached their leader. They did weaken me, and I was very wounded by the time I reached the top. Tomoe was nowhere to be seen, but I assumed she was in the abandoned shrine near by.

"I fought with the leader, but was in no shape to defeat him. I managed to muster one final blow in hope of killing him. My blade met flesh, and I looked up to see I he was falling backwards, but my joy was short lived, for I realized Tomoe was between us, and I had…" He faltered. "My sword had gone through Tomoe as she tried to protect me from his blade. As she lay dying in my arms, she took her dagger and ran it along my cheek…" he ran a finger across one of the lines in his cross-shaped scar. "I have never forgiven myself for her death."

Kaoru was silent. She had not expected this, but she found that she was not afraid of Kenshin, nor disgusted by the fact that he had killed his wife. She felt her love for him was very childish now, and very foolish, compared to Tomoe. Even the fact that he might love her seemed foolish as well, as he probably never got over his dead wife. "Why…why did you tell me all this?"

"Because you asked,"

"Oh," She said quietly. "I thought…It's stupid now, but I-" She bit her lip, then just spat it out. "I care very deeply for you Kenshin-no that's not right. I'm in love with you. I thought, maybe you loved me too, but-"

She was cut off as Kenshin pulled her towards him and kissed her full on the mouth. At first she was surprised-no one had ever kissed her before-but as Kenshin tilted her head and deepened the kiss, she moaned softly and threw her hands around his neck. It seemed that they stood there forever, locked in an eternal embrace. When they finally broke apart, Kenshin cupped Kaoru's face in his hands. "Oh Kaoru, you are the most beautiful and wonderful woman I have ever met. How could you think that I didn't love you when I rushed back from Kyoto, in this condition, just to see you?"

"To see…me?" She asked meekly, still overwhelmed by what had just happened.

"I tried to tell you, though I supposed I didn't make much sense,"

Kaoru suddenly remembered his words from the previous night: "I had to come back…had to see you…"

"What happened to you in Kyoto?" She whispered.

"I was ambushed. Ordinarily, that sort of situation would not have resulted in this-" he motioned to his wound. "-However, one of the men said that he knew about you, and that someone was already on their way here to kill you. I was so shocked that he was able to hit me, but I quickly recovered. All four men are now dead.

"So as soon as I had my wounds treated and sent a message to Aoshi-san that they had threatened a girl living in my house, mentioning her by name and description, I rushed back to make sure you were alright. I see now, as I should have then, that it was just a ploy to distract me, and it worked.

"However Kaoru, they may not have come for you this time, but my cover has been blown. They know who I am and who you are, and, more importantly, where you are. You are not safe,"

"As long as you're with me, I can deal with anything," She smiled and kissed him. "And you know, I'm not too shabby myself. You should have seen how I took care of Tanaka the other day,"

He grinned. "I believe you. And now, you'll always have me." He touched her face. "I've asked Aoshi-san to release me from my position. If all goes well, we'll be able to leave and start a new life together!"

Kaoru returned his smile, but the fact that he worked for Aoshi nagged at her. "Kenshin, there's something I should tell you," He looked at her quizzically as she took a deep breath. "I think you should know," She began, then changed her mind. "I think you should know that your bandages need to be changed. I can do it for you, if you like. Megumi showed me how."

Kenshin looked at her for a moment, as if expecting something else. Kaoru held his gaze for as long as she could before walking away to get the bandages.

She bit her lip as she thought, _Oh Kaoru, how deep are you going to let yourself get before you realize you're drowning? _

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So… forgive me if it's a little OOC, but what can I say?

Alright, chapter 12 next week! It'll be a good one, and you won't wanna miss it!!

Please review!


	12. Chapter 12

Hello! Sorry, I know I'm a day late, but I was having a little trouble with this chapter (nothing to worry about, I just had to make sure I got things how I wanted them before I posted it).

So how has your week been? I hope it was a good one. I know mine was; I read the last Harry Potter book in roughly 8 hours, and that was possibly the best 8 hours of my life. Sorry if you aren't a fan or haven't finished it yet; no spoilers here, so not to worry, but I thought it was a very good ending.

One more thing before you start: I'm trying to come up with new pen name, preferably something short, because I'm just not feelin' my old one anymore. So if you have any ideas for me, please let me know, if not, you can just ignore this.

So anyway, I don't own Kenshin or Harry Potter, and I hope you enjoy the chapter I have so lovingly prepared for you!!!

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Kaoru would have spent the next few days in bliss, had it not been for the thought of Aoshi nagging at her. She spent her days in the fields and her nights wrapped in Kenshin's arms. She loved falling asleep every night to the sound of his heartbeat, and waking up each morning to his loving gaze. Kenshin was always the perfect gentleman, of course, never doing anything inappropriate. He didn't even spend the whole night with her; he would wait until she was sound asleep to remove himself from her bed, and she would awake to find him sitting in his corner once more.

One night, however, Kaoru was having trouble sleeping, and as such, was keeping Kenshin awake. "What is it Kaoru?"

"Kenshin, I've been thinking. Suppose you do get to go off and start a new life somewhere. What's going to happen to me?"

"I would take you with me," He said very matter-of-factly.

This was just what she had been hoping for. "Oh, Kenshin, you promise?"

He kissed her gently. "If you promise to come with me,"

She grinned and snuggled closer to him, taking in his scent, and kissed him. She looked at his face and felt her heart flutter at the sight of his amethyst eyes peering out at her from behind a mess of red hair. "Of course," She kissed him again, this time fuller. Her hand moved to the nape of his neck, where her fingers twirled his luxuriously smooth hair. He put a hand on the small of her back to puller her closer.

"Kaoru," he whispered, resting his forehead against hers. She closed her eyes, wanting to stay just like this with him forever.

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The next morning was one just like any other; Kaoru awoke to find Kenshin sitting in his corner, sword in his lap, and the two went out for breakfast, where they made small talk with Sano and Megumi.

The four then walked out to the fields with everyone else. Kenshin and Sano left to fix a part of the road that had washed out, while Kaoru and Megumi were given the task of sorting rotten daikon radishes from good ones, as someone had found several.

As the day began to wear on, Megumi suggested that Kaoru take the men some water. She complied, and filling a large bucket, she wandered over to the road. There was a group of five of them, and she offered water to the three she did not know before making her way to Kenshin and Sano.

She flushed when she saw them. Although it was late autumn, it was still very warm, and she supposed it could get very hot doing manual labor, so she supposed it made perfect sense for them to work topless.

She ignored Sano; her main focus was Kenshin. A fine layer of sweat and dirt stuck to his heavily muscled torso, making him glow, and his brilliant red hair gleamed in the sunlight. _He's mine,_ she thought with a sly grin.

Sano cocked an eyebrow at her, but Kenshin smiled, almost as if he was basking in her affectionate gaze. "Water," She said softly, stating her purpose for being there.

"Thanks Missy," Sano said, and he and Kenshin took several appreciative gulps, effectively empting the bucket. "Anything interesting happen in your neck of the woods?" He asked.

"If you call rotten radishes interesting," Kaoru sighed.

"Well, _I _don't, but that's a woman for you," He grinned as Kenshin picket up his shovel.

"Well, you obviously have rotten radishes for brains," She laughed.

"Do you hear something?" Kenshin asked, sounding serious.

"What do you mean?" Kaoru and Sano asked at the same time.

"It sounds like someone is coming," He replied.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Asked Sano, but then he heard it too; it was the sound of a horse galloping towards them.

The small group backed off the road as a young man riding a thin looking bay approached them. He slowed when he saw them standing near the road.

"Hey there!" Kaoru knew that voice. "I'm looking for the Shinomori household. I'm trying to find my sister!"

_It couldn't be!_ Kaoru stood on tiptoe, trying to identify the rider.

"Does she have a name?" Sano asked indignantly.

"Yeah; Kamiya- whoops, I mean- Shinomori-" He suddenly caught sight of his sister. "-Kaoru!"

All eyes were on Kaoru as she waved meekly to her younger brother. "Hello, Yahiko."

Kenshin was glaring at her. She didn't need to look. She could feel his amber eyes boring holes straight into her. "_Shinomori _Kaoru?" He sounded very calm and collected, but at the same time, more enraged than she had ever heard anyone. "I…we…you were…I believed…" he cursed.

"Kaoru!" Yahiko cried, dismounting. "What are you doing here? We got Misao's letter, and-" He seemed to step into the almost visible circle of seething rage around Kenshin. "-Uh, is something wrong?"

"You must be tired after your journey," Kenshin said, almost brightly. "Please, come to my home and rest for a while. You and your sister will want to catch up."

Kenshin led Kaoru and Yahiko back to the house in stony silence. When they arrived, Kenshin sat them down at the table while he busied himself with making tea.

"Yahiko, what are you doing here?" Kaoru finally managed to ask.

"Well, I guess things started with the letter."

"What? What letter? What are you talking about?"

"There was the first letter from Misao saying you had disappeared, then there was the second on saying you were home safe. I don't know how to put this Kaoru, but…" His eyes filled with tears. "Kaoru, Otosan never got the second letter."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean he was very sick when the first one came. The doctors said it was worry for you that did it, but our father is dead, Kaoru. He died about two months ago. I know I should have sent a letter to you, but so much has been happening…" His voice seemed to fade.

The fact that Kenshin knew she had lied to him paled in comparison to this. Her Otosan was dead. Tears pricked her eyes as she remembered him carrying her on his shoulders when she was small, or when he had handed her first bokken. His kind smile, his big hands, his eyes that had always been so sad after her mothers death…how could he be gone?

"…our debt, and it doesn't help that Ojiisan cut all ties, so-" She cut him off as Kenshin reentered the room with a pot of tea.

"Wait, what?"

Yahiko eyed Kenshin, then looked at the floor, as if embarrassed to be talking about such things in front of a stranger. "I was saying, apparently Otosan had been hiding how much debt we really had, so everyone we owe money to is pounding on our door day and night, and they're threatening to take the farm if we don't pay our debts soon, and the only way we could do that is if Ojiisan would lend us money, but he refuses to se me or answer any of my letters! He's insisting he has no ties with our family!" The boy gasped for air.

"That despicable old bastard…" she hissed under her breath. How much more damage would he inflict upon their broken family before he was satisfied?

"So I thought that I could borrow some money from you, but you wouldn't answer my letters, so I came over here to talk to you myself."

"I see," Kaoru said thoughtfully. So much had happened in such a short time, she didn't know what to think of it all. "And you thought I was being like Ojiisan and ignoring you completely?" Yahiko nodded. "I'm so sorry! Of course I'll loan you the money, Otouto! All we have to do is go up to the main house, and…" Her eyes fell on Kenshin, who was brooding darkly. "Yahiko, I'll be ready to go in just a moment. Will you wait outside for me?" He nodded and walked out of the small house, leaving Kenshin and Kaoru alone.

"Kenshin…" She whispered, but he made no reply. "Kenshin, please forgive me, if I could just explain-"

"Explain what?" He asked icily. "Explain how you lost your brother when he was standing in front of me moments ago? Explain how you were to be married to a man who is twice my age, when I know Aoshi-san is younger than myself? Explain that your name is Shinomori Kaoru?"

"Kenshin, I-" Tears were threatening now.

"When they first came looking for you, I thought you might be his wife, but Megumi didn't want to hand you over because you were still unwell. I went against my better judgment and let you stay in my house. I trusted you Kaoru! I told you things I've never told anyone!" He cried. "I believed all your lies, and I let myself love you!" His eyes were yellow and malevolent. "No, I find I was loving another man's wife!"

"If I could just-" She wept.

"No." He hid his eyes behind his bangs and turned away from her. "Go home to your husband."

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Oh no!! It finally happened!! He finally found out!!

Express your horror, dismay, or I-knew-it-was-coming-ness by reviewing!


	13. Chapter 13

Hmmm… So, I'm not sure if any of you are familiar with the fic Dancing Plumbs and Eighth Grade Literature, but it is in my humble opinion, one of the BEST RK fan fictions EVER. I'm reading it for the umpteenth time, and I am so friggin' addicted to that fic, I keep forgetting I have my own to finish. I am literally begging myself, 'one more chapter, please??'

God, it's like eighth grade all over again…I'm staying up until three or four in the morning (only now it's work I'm going to be groggy for instead of school) doing absolutely NOTHING online (unless looking up different words in Japanese, reading uber-fluffy fan fics, and looking at cute fan art counts as something) writing spastically, and being attacked by my cat. Woot.

Um, just to clear up any confusion caused by the guys working on the road in the last chapter. The way I see it is thus:

**[Aoshi's**

**[Shrine****\**

nice little **\** main road

path Kaoru **\**

runs away on **\**

**[Village /**

Part of road

that's washed out 

Of course, that's a rather a computerized version of it, where the distances aren't quite right because I needed text, and it's lacking pretty trees and fields and houses and things, but I hope that clears up why Yahiko just_ happened_ to come across the rest of the Kenshingumi.

Other than that…I don't own Kenshin, Kaoru, Sano, Misao…blah blah blah…I mean come on, would you trust me with them? Yeah, that's what I thought.

Ok, now that I have nothing more to banter on about, please read the story!

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The walk home was not a pleasant one. Yahiko and Kaoru continued on the main road, Yahiko leading his horse, as he felt it wouldn't be fair for one of them to ride while the other walked. Kaoru was shocked to see how much the scenery had changed since Aoshi had brought her home for the first time.

When she had arrived with Misao, everything had been lush and beautiful, and Kaoru had thought that her new home might not be so terrible. Now, as she walked with Yahiko, an impartial eye would have found the red and gold leaves just as beautiful, however, Kaoru was only reminded of Kenshin's hair under the sun and his frightening amber eyes.

She was thankful, however, for Yahiko's silence on the matter of why she was with Kenshin. It meant she didn't have to try to explain anything. At least, not yet.

As she walked up the main drive, she was spotted by several servants, who seemed not to recognize her at first. "Yahiko," she hissed, "If anybody asks, you found me wandering on the side of the road." Yahiko looked at her quizzically, but said nothing.

A servant approached them and bowed. "Konichiwa. I must apologize, but Shinomori-sama has not returned yet, but please allow us to offer you our hospitality until he returns." The man bowed again. "Please, follow me. We will see to it that your horse is stabled, and you are well cared for."

Kaoru took a deep breath and straightened herself. "And when will my husband be returning?" The words felt foreign and bitter on her tongue.

The servant looked at her wide-eyed. "Shinomori Kaoru? Is it really you, Shinomori-sama?" Kaoru nodded, and the servant gave a load whoop. "We thought you had died! Thank the gods you have been returned to us! Where have you been?" He suddenly sobered. "Gomen nasai. It was not my place to ask." He bowed very low.

"It's alright," Kaoru said softly. "All you need to know is that my brother Yahiko found me, and I am home now." She felt her stomach clench sickeningly as she spoke. _Home…this is not my home. _

"Hai, hai. Please, come with me. You must be tired. I'll have someone prepare a room for Yahiko-sama, and you'll want a bath, of course, then I'll have someone set out some new clothes for you…"He didn't really seem to be talking to her anymore, and began directing other servants. "Everyone, Kaoru-sama is home! We must do our best to make her comfortable now that she has returned." Several pairs of eyes gazed wonderingly at Kaoru, and she knew how she must appear to them; she certainly did not fit the image of 'lady of the house,' and she knew it.

"Please," She asked. "Misao…My servant. Where is she?"

"Oh! I would assume she is in her room. I'll have someone go and get her, so she can attend to you."

Yahiko had remained silent thus far, but he couldn't stand it anymore. He gabbed her arm and hissed in her ear, "Just how long have you been gone?"

She shook him off and whispered, "Don't worry about it. Please, we'll have a chance to talk later, but not yet."

Yahiko glared at her as he was led off to another section of the house, and she sighed. Too much was happening.

"Kaoru!" She heard the squeal, and before she had time to react, Misao had thrown herself upon the older girl, locking her in a bone-crushing hug. "Oh, Kaoru, when the told me you were alive, I was just so overjoyed, I couldn't believe it!" She winked. "What happened? _Where _have you been?" she laughed, but her face fell as she looked at Kaoru. "Kaoru? What's wrong?"

"Oh Misao!" She cried, and, throwing her arms around the younger woman's neck, she began to sob.

"Kaoru, Kaoru, what is it? Tell me what happened!" Her face hardened, and she whispered low enough that only Kaoru could hear, _"Did he do something to you?"_

Kaoru shook her head, and Misao looked up, taking charge. "Kaoru-sama has had a very hard time of things, as you all can imagine," She said, addressing the crowd of goggling servants. "I'm going to take her to her room now, and I ask that you all leave her alone until she is feeling better. I will be taking care of her personally, so you all may go about your daily business." Misao led her sobbing friend up the stairs to her room.

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Once she was washed and dressed, the kitchens sent up some food, but Kaoru didn't even look at it. She wasn't hungry.

"Alright Kaoru, tell me what happened." Misao said gently.

Kaoru closed her eyes, trying to keep the tears at bay. Slowly, she recounted the past several days for Misao, starting with Kenshin's return from Kyoto, his proclamation of love, Yahiko's appearance, his news of her family, and ending with Kenshin's refusal to let her explain anything.

"I love him so much Misao, and now Aoshi's going to come back, and I'm going to be stuck with him for the rest of my life…" Misao muttered something that sounded very much life 'I don' t think that would be so bad,' and Kaoru jumped up, remembering. "He's in love with you, Misao! I know he is! If you just explain to him it's been you writing all those letters, I know he'll understand!"

Misao shook her head sadly. "Kaoru, as much as I'd love that to work…"

Kaoru sat back down. "I know," she sighed. "I'm still his wife. What a state we've managed to get ourselves into…" she wrapped an arm around Misao, who now looked very forlorn.

"Misao, we have each other, if nothing else." Kaoru said sagely. "I'm sorry for all of this."

Misao nodded, and wrapped her arms around Kaoru. The two girls stayed enveloped in each other's arms for a very long time.

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Aoshi would return in three days. Through the course of these three days, Kaoru explained everything to Misao and Yahiko, prayed for her father, prepared herself for the arrival of her husband, and wrote a letter to Kenshin.

It took her several tries, as she hated the wording of two and ruined three with her tears. Finally, she decided on what she would say to him.

_Kenshin,_

_I know I lied to you, and that it was wrong of me. You must understand, however, how much of the truth I did tell you. While my name is now Shinomori, this was changed from Kamiya when I married. My grandfather did marry me to an older man; Aoshi-san is nine years older than I am. I never told you my brother died; I told you I lost him, and this is true. I felt I had lost him as part of my old life when I married. _

_Please, understand my position. My grandfather gambled me off, and it was sheer luck that I became a wife instead of a concubine. The man I married never spoke to me, never looked at me, never touched me. To this day, our marriage is left unconsummated. He would lock me up in the house while he was gone, and I had had enough of it. It wasn't as though I could clean of do anything that might be useful; no, I had servants for that. All I did was sit in my room for days on end, pouring over thrice-read books and telling Misao the same old stories. _

_Kenshin, this is not the life I desired. I wanted one where I could be happy. A life that made me feel whole and complete. I found that life with you; I found contentment in your arms, in your eyes, in your touch, in your very being. With you, I feel alive and happy and things I could not even begin to describe, because there are not words to explain how I felt with you. _

_I know that I should not have stayed with you, that I should have gone home the day I woke up, but something drew me to you. Something made me stay. I now realize that it was love. I loved you as soon as I met you, and I still love you. I will always love you, no matter how you feel about me. No matter where I am or who I am with, you will always be on my mind. _

_I lied to you about many things, but one thing that I was always truthful about was my love for you. I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me, and I hope that I will be able to forgive myself for what I have done. _

_Kaoru_

As Kaoru gave the letter to Misao to deliver in the dead of night, Kaoru was sure she had never experienced anything so terrible as she did now.

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Ok all, that's chapter 13. It looks like I'm going to be able to squeeze about 2 more chapters out of this fic, which is good news for those of you who can't wait to see how it ends, and bad news for those of you who just like to see how we get there. Oh well. You can't please everybody, right?

So, I have two things for you to ponder as you review. I am thinking about changing my pen name, and does anybody have any good ideas? If yes, super! You should tell me. If no, well, pretend you didn't read this, and skip to the next bit.

2nd thing: I'm thinking of finding a beta reader for the other stories that are buzzing madly around in my head. Who thinks this is a good idea? If you are interested/know someone who might be interested, please, let me know.

Ok, that's it.

Oh, wait, except for the part where I beg you to review.


	14. Chapter 14

AHHHH!!! I'm so sorry I'm late with this chapter!!! I had a very busy weekend, what with my wonderful Japanese language partners returning to Japan (sniff), my boyfriend coming back home (YAY!), a birthday party (Not mine, but fun anyway!), and various other things, so I didn't get a chance to sit down and write this very often.

Also, sorry I SUCK. I forgot to review to all your wonderful reviews for chapter 12! I'm a terrible person, and I understand if you hate me, but I hope you'll all forgive me!

Now! Chapter 14!!!!!

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Kaoru knew she would not be going back to Kenshin. She had a duty to Aoshi, her husband, and as loathe as she might be to perform that duty, she knew she had to.

After a long talk with Misao, they had decided that Kaoru would do best to pretend it that she really was the one who wrote the letters to Aoshi, and hope that she eventually began to care for him, at least as a friend. She had asked Misao for the letters he had written, so she could pull off the façade. Both girls were teary-eyed for the better part of three days.

On the day that Aoshi was to return, Kaoru awoke with a resigned feeling in the pit of her stomach. She got up, bathed, and dressed in a black kimono with small silver cranes soaring across the hem; very fitting for a wife, she noted.

The whole household turned out to greet Aoshi's carriage, except Misao, who was feeling ill. Kaoru could not blame her.

When Aoshi arrived, Kaoru greeted him with deep bow and a "Welcome home, Anata." Aoshi touched her shoulder gently, and she felt a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. "Thank you, Koishii."

"This is my brother Yahiko, Aoshi," She said, gently resting a hand on the boy's shoulder. "He arrived a few days ago, and, if you don't mind, he'll be staying for a while longer,"

"Of course," Aoshi bowed to Yahiko. "I would be honored for you to stay."

"Diner is ready," She said stiffly, but tried her best to be caring. "You must be starved form that long ride."

He nodded gratefully, and Kaoru asked that lunch be served. She sat beside him, and served him tea. "How was Kyoto?" She asked, wishing she didn't feel so awkward.

"I wouldn't want to bore you with the details," He said gently. "However, everything is in order." She nodded and continued with her meal. She hadn't really expected him to tell her anything. "Yahiko, do you practice Kamiya Kasshin ryuu as well?"

Yahiko nodded and was about to speak, but after a look from Kaoru he swallowed his food before answering. "Yeah, Kaoru is the Assistant Master because she's older, but Otosan taught me a lot of it before…before he died."

"What?" Aoshi asked, looking at Kaoru. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Gomen, Aoshi, but I only found out when Yahiko came. He told me what had happened. Please, let's not talk about it now." She gave him a pained look.

"Of course," He seemed to reach out to touch her hand, but decided against it at the last minute and grabbed his empty teacup.

She smiled inwardly at his gesture, relieved to know he wasn't exactly comfortable being touchy-feely with her, and poured him another cup of tea.

The tree made small talk for some time, before Yahiko yawned rather rudely, and Aoshi announced he wanted a bath, but the others could go to bed.

Kaoru said good night to her brother, then went to her room, where she quickly undressed and got into bed.

When Aoshi entered a short while later, she had almost fallen asleep, but she was wide-awake as he lay down next to her on the futon. "Kaoru, Koishii, are you awake?" She did not stir, and tried to keep her breathing even, pretending she was asleep. "That's alright. Sleep… Kaoru, I know you can't hear me, but maybe that's what gives me the courage to say this. Sometimes, when you wrote those letters, I wished…but no, I promised myself I would make this work, for both of us." He leaned over and pecked her cheek; the most intimate thing he had ever done with her. "Good night Koishi,"

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"Kenshin, just read the Goddamn letter!" Sano yelled. Kenshin just sat quietly, eating his rice. "If you won't read it, I'm gonna read it to you, and I'll yell, so you can't ignore me." Kenshin began admire the rice in his bowl; it was so warm and tasty, and it went well with every other part of his meal. "Are you even listening to me?"

Sano growled and threw his rice bowl at Kenshin's face, which the red head gracefully avoided. Megumi simply stared. "For your information, Sano, I did read the letter." Kenshin stood, and Sano glared at him.

"So what did it say?"

"I'm not sure why you think it's any of your business,"

"Because you told us what happened when her brother showed up, and from the sound of things, you didn't let her explain anything. I wanna know what the deal is!" Sano cried.

Kenshin sighed. "She told me the truth, and I am grateful for that, at least." He walked off to his room and slid the door closed with a snap.

Sano frowned and crossed his arms, fuming. "He just doesn't get it!" He grumbled to Megumi.

"Sano, I know you're just trying to help, but if she's Aoshi's wife, it would be hard for him to do anything. To be honest, I think he's taking it all rather well. He hasn't disappeared yet."

"I just want him to be happy. He's done so much for us…"

"I know, and I agree, but I don't know what we can do."

"Well Fox, if you could make him do something, what would you have him do? You're the one with the brains here."

Megumi smiled coyly at his last comment, but thought for a moment. "I'd have him write a letter back to Kaoru, one that says he understands why she did what she did, and where he tells her how he's feeling. Better yet, I'd have him march up there right now and talk things over with her. I don't think that will happen, because Aoshi's in the way, but…" She sighed crossly. "You're right. He just doesn't get it. It's like he's a different person with her around. I mean, we've known him how many years? And I don't think I've ever seen him as content as he was with her. It really is an unfortunate situation, because he needs her just as much as she needs him." She glared at Sano. "Men are such fools."

"What do you mean? You said yourself there's nothing he can do!" Sano cocked an eyebrow.

"I never said that," She replied with a diabolical look in her eye. She stood suddenly. "Oh, there's plenty he can do if he really wants to. I think it's time I had a little talk with our friend Himura."

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Kaoru spent the day with Yahiko and Misao, as the two had put together a small picnic to try to cheer her up. Kaoru did try very hard to have a good time, and felt slightly better after reminiscing about the good times the three had had at their old home, like the time Yahiko had been pulled in the lake by an over large fish, or when Misao had been chased up a tree by an angry cow. Kaoru found herself smiling with them, but whenever she thought of Kenshin or Aoshi, she felt her smile fade.

Dinner that night was quiet as always, though both Kaoru and Aoshi tried very hard to make small talk. Kaoru felt sick every time he gave her a gentle look or poured her more sake. She noticed he was giving her strange looks that made her feel rather uncomfortable.

When they prepared for bed, and Kaoru lay on the futon, Aoshi approached her cautiously. "Kaoru…" He whispered softly.

"Yes, Anata?" slowly, he took her hand and seemed to study it for some time. He brushed it with his lips so briefly Kaoru didn't even realize he had kissed it. She wanted to pull back, but resisted.

"Kaoru, you told me in your letters of your love for me. You stirred some of those feelings up in me, and although I know I have not always been a dutiful husband, I think we should…" he gave her a kind look, and she shivered, knowing what he meant.

"Yes Anata," She whispered, and he crawled closer to her, gently touching her face.

She knew her face betrayed emotions of sadness and fear when he said, "I will be gentle. Don't be scared." She closed her eyes and nodded.

He kissed her gently, slowly laying her out on the futon. She felt like something was missing in his brief kisses, but she could not think what with all the other thoughts clouding her brain.

He carefully ran his hands up and down her back, then moved to the front of her yukata and slowly untied it as she bit back tears. He kissed her again, his tongue tentative and hesitant in her mouth as he undid his own yukata.

Kaoru pressed her hands to her eyes, and her only thoughts were now of what to say to Misao.

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O.O

What?!? What was that??? Am I being an evil author again, or do I know how things will turn out in the end? Maybe both…

Please review, but please, don't impale me on sharp objects, or throw things at me or anything like that, or else I won't be able to finish the story!!

Next week: The exciting conclusion to Tangled Web of Life! DUNDUNDUN!!!


	15. Chapter 15

And here it is, the moment you've all been waiting for…the final chapter!! Once again, I appoligize for it being late, but my internet really didn't want me to upload it last night, so I decided to do it this morning. Sorry!

First of all, I would like to tell you all that, no matter what anyone has told me in their reviews, I have kept the ending the way I always wanted it to be. That doesn't mean you'll enjoy it any less, but…well, you'll see.

Secondly, my dear reviewer Onhiro has informed me that I am not being evil, I'm being cunning. I think I like that expression much more. It makes me feel smart.

Anyway, here it is. Enjoy.

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_He kissed her gently, slowly laying her out on the futon. She felt like something was missing in his brief kisses, but she could not think what with all the other thoughts clouding her brain. _

_He carefully ran his hands up and down her back, then moved to the front of her yukata and slowly untied it as she bit back tears. He kissed her again, his tongue tentative and hesitant in her mouth as he undid his own yukata. _

_Kaoru pressed her hands to her eyes, and her only thoughts were now of what to say to Misao_.

"Aoshi," She said suddenly, before they could take the final step as husband and wife.

"Yes, Koishii?"

"You don't love me, do you?"

He gave her a very frank look. "What are you talking about?"

"Your kisses…something's missing from them. It's desire. You don't want to be kissing me or touching me or-or anything like that because you don't love me! Every look you give me…it's like you're trying so hard, but I can see it in your eyes. You don't want me as your wife!"

"Kaoru, I… I don't know what to say."

"Say you don't love me!" She cried.

"Are you happy about this?" The poor man looked very confused. "I thought…in your letters, you seemed so enraptured. I thought you loved me, so I swore to myself I would do my best to make you happy, even if that meant…"

She clapped her hands, throwing her head back in laughter. Aoshi was completely bewildered at this point. "But you don't love me!" She wanted to throw her arms around him, but felt that she would confuse him to the point of an exploded cranium if she did any such thing.

Suddenly, she had an idea. "Aoshi," she said, sitting up and retying her yukata "Many years ago, you lived in a ninja village with a young girl who you loved in a way you could never love me. You promised you would come back for her, didn't you?" Aoshi looked shocked, and Kaoru lowered her voice. "But when you returned, she was gone. Then, by some horrible twist of fate, we were thrown together, dashing your hopes of ever being reunited with your ninja girl." Kaoru smiled.

"How…how do you know all this?" He whispered, straitening his own yukata.

"Wait, I'm not finished." She was feeling very proud of herself. "When I started writing you letters, you started to think that I really did care for you. Unwilling to disappoint me, unwilling to make another life miserable and loveless, you wrote back. You told me how much you loved me, how you missed me, how you longed to hold me in your arms." She smiled kindly at Aoshi. "It wasn't me you were writing to, though, was it? It was that girl in the ninja village. Every time you received one of my letters, you pretended it was her writing you, so you could make me happy."

Aoshi looked baffled. "How could you know all this? I thought… I just wanted to…you never loved me?" He didn't sound hurt or angry, just dazed.

"No," She said. "I never even wrote you those letters. Your childhood sweetheart, Machimaki Misao did."

"What? What do you mean? How could she possibly…?"

"Because, Aoshi, she came with me here as my servant. I could ring for her right now, and she'd confess the whole thing. She could tell you things about the village that no one besides your Misao could know. You must believe me."

Aoshi seemed thoughtful. "Bring her here," He whispered.

Kaoru stood and rang for Misao, who came quickly with a rather pale look on her face. "Yes, Kaoru? Er, I mean, Kaoru-sama?"

"Misao, please come in here. Aoshi has something he would like to ask you."

Misao looked at Kaoru in horror. "You didn't…"

"Just come in and sit down," She told her friend. Misao sat, but started at the ground, her hair falling over her face.

"Misao," Aoshi said breathlessly. "I need you to answer truthfully."

"Yes, Aoshi-sama." Misao mumbled.

"Is it true you were the one writing the letters?"

She cringed. "Yes, Aoshi-sama."

"Why were you writing those letters?"

"Because," She whispered. "Because I…"

"Why did you leave when I promised to return for you?" Misao looked up mouth agape. She saw hurt in his eyes, but also love and understanding.

"Oh, Aoshi-sama," She cried. "I tried so hard to wait for you, but after my father died, there was nothing to keep my mother at bay. I couldn't stand living with her, so I went out to find you! I'm so sorry! I never stopped loving you, I never-" suddenly she was cut off as he grabbed her and kissed her passionately. She melted into him, tears running down her cheeks.

Aoshi seemed to remember Kaoru still sat in the room, and broke away, but still kept an arm around Misao. _His Misao. _"But Kaoru, there is one thing I don't understand. Why were you letting her write these letters? Please don't think that I am not eternally grateful for it, but why would a married woman allow her servant to write love letters to her husband? And then act as though you were the one writing the letters, when you had no feelings for me what so ever? It does not make sense."

Kaoru gapped at him for a moment, realizing he had probably never said so much at one time in his entire life, when Misao took over. "Well, it all started when I lost Kaoru and had to apologize for it."

Over the next hour, Misao and Kaoru explained to Aoshi everything that had happened in his absence. When they were finished, he looked somewhat surprised, but he nodded. "Himura told me he had found someone, but he never gave her a name. How strange that these things happen. My apologies that both of you happiness's ended because of me." He sighed. "But what do we do now? You and I are still married."

Misao piped up. "Not to be cruel, but even though we all realized we love each other, I don't know how we can make this work."

Kaoru grinned devilishly. "I think I do."

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It was a cloudy morning, grey only because the sun had not yet risen. It was chilly, but not uncomfortably cold. Kaoru smiled to herself, recalling the happenings of the previous night.

_Kaoru had smiled. "Misao, you are my best friend, and I want you to be happy. Aoshi, I'll give you two my blessing and disappear, if you do me one favor."_

"_What do you mean 'disappear?'"_

"_Well, I've already run away once. No one would blame you for marrying someone else if your wife ran away a second time. Remember, even though you thought I was here writing you letters, the servants all thought you knew I was gone."_

_Misao smiled, and Aoshi…well, Kaoru wasn't sure Aoshi could smile, but he did look much happier. "What favor?"_

"_My father was in considerable debt when he died. I know your father left you with more money than anyone would need in a life time, so I am simply asking you to help Yahiko pay off our father's debt so he can keep our family's home." _

_Aoshi nodded and Misao threw her arms around Kaoru. "What would I do with out you?" She whispered. _

"_But where will you go?" Aoshi asked. _

"_I'm not sure yet. I just know I can't stay here. Perhaps I'll write to you when I get settled in somewhere," She winked. _

Now, as she walked along the road, she knew everything would be taken care of. The household would be awakened in a few hours to the sounds of Aoshi's yells that Kaoru had gone again. He would head a search party, which would, of course, go opposite of how she now traveled, so there was no hope of them finding her before she got away.

Yahiko would be taken aside at a later point in the day and have everything explained to him. He might not be happy, but Kaoru had promised she would write to him as well.

She sighed. Everything had worked out so well…except…"Kenshin!"

Kenshin looked up, startled. He had been pacing, and looked very tired. "Kaoru! I…well, I um…" he stammered.

"What are you doing here?" She asked.

"I could ask you the same thing." He replied tartly, having regained his composure.

"Yes, but I asked first." She put her hands on her hips, shifting her weight so that her pack was not so uncomfortable.

"I…" He sighed. "Megumi and I had a very long talk, and she seems to have knocked some sense into me. Quite literally, in fact." He said, rubbing his head. "I knew you wouldn't have written that letter if you didn't really care, but I didn't want you to care, because I didn't want _myself_ to care. I knew I could never have you, because you're married, and I hated that.

"But, after Megumi's talk, I decided to go up to the main house and find you. I just wanted to tell you in person that I loved you, and I still love you, Kaoru. I wanted to make things right between us, though in doing so, I know I might cause more harm than good, but I wanted you to know.

Kaoru smiled. "I love you too, Kenshin. I really do."

"I was on my way up to the house, but I…I was trying to figure out how I could talk to you, short of accidentally running into you."

"Well, it looks as though you have accidentally run into me,"

"That I have. And may a now know what you're doing out here?"

So she told him about Misao's letters and Aoshi's love, and her want for their happiness. He nodded in understanding. "Where will you go?" He asked gently.

"Well, I've been thinking. First I'd like to go back to the farm, and pay my respects to my father. Then I was thinking perhaps I could go to Tokyo. I think that would be far enough away from here. I might even be able to start up my own dojo and teach my father's ideals to others."

Kenshin smiled. "Well it would not be good to make such a long journey alone, especially with winter coming on. You really should have someone with you."

"Oh? And do you know someone I could take with me?" She grinned.

He gave her a tender kiss. "I can think of someone who would be very willing."

Kaoru gave a squeal of joy and they herself into Kenshin's arms, promptly knocking him over. "Oro…"

Kaoru gave him a strange look. "What did you say?"

"Nothing," He said gently as he helped her to her feet. "It will be morning soon, and everyone will be waking up. We really should be going."

Kaoru nodded, then stopped. "Oh, wait. Just one more thing."

"What is it?" He paused as she riffled through her bag for a moment before pulling out a small, dirty bundle. "What's that?"

Kaoru looked longingly at the object in her hands. "When I came here, I took a handful of earth from our farm. You see, if part of it was with me, then I could never be far from my home. But I've stared to realize something. Home is less about where you are then who you are with. The farm was my home because my friends and family were there, but…" She carefully untied the bundle, letting the dirt fall from her hand and catch in the wind to settle on the road. "But now I see that this really has no meaning." She shouldered her pack again and smiled, taking Kenshin's hand. "It doesn't matter anymore, because I've realized that my home is with you, and it will always be with you, no matter where you might be."

Kenshin gave her hand a little squeeze, and the two walked down the road, ghostlike in the sunrise.

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OH MY GOD I'M DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!

GAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!! THAT'S THE FIRST TIME I'VE EVER FINISHED A FAN FIC!!! DSHHFGHUDASKVFSGHGUHIDOFGKDH!! I'M SO FRICKIN EXCITED!!

Ok, deep breaths… Ooobahhh… ok, I'm good.

Sorry about that. I guess that just tells you how spastic of an author I am…

You all rock my socks, and thank you all so much for supporting me and giving me your feed back on this story. It has meant so much to me, and I hope you've had as much fun with it as I did. I love you all!

Now, this is the last time I get to do this for this story, so I think I'll go out with a bang: REVIEW!!!!! I don't care if it's 2984, the Robot Revolution is taking place, and you just found this story. I want to know what you think! Please, let me know; I'd really appreciate it!

Gawd, I'm such a freak…

Kaleidoscope Vision

P.S. Stay tuned next week for the 100 reviews bonus chapter!


	16. Chapter 16: Bonus Chapter

Ok, since you all love me enough to give me 126 reviews at last count, I now present to you the 100 reviews BONUS CHAPTER!

It's really just a bunch of silliness, with no actually need to be here, but I thought it would be fun to have a look at what Sano and Megumi are thinking at the story's end.

Here you go: it's your reward for being such loyal reviewers! I hope you enjoy it… I, on the other hand, will be going back to school today…that's right! While you're reading this, my brain is now turning to mush from trying to figure out my new schedule and wondering how I will ever survive my senior year.

Also, for anyone who cares, I just realized that map I tried to draw you of Aoshi's didn't really work when it got uploaded…I'm gonna try to put in on my profile page, if anyone is interested to see what it really looked like…

Yeah... anyway, here you go. Please, don't hate me for this…although I understand if you do…I sort of hate myself for it. But I do hope you have fun, I will miss you all, but I hope to see at least some of you again in future stories!

Ta!

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Sano sighed, looking at the table. "I can't believe he just…left!" He blubbered.

"Oh, Sano, it's alright," Megumi said, bringing him a cup of tea. "He's happy now! See, the story worked out fine! Aoshi and Misao are together, and Kenshin and Kaoru are together, just how it's supposed to be!"

"Yeah, but what about us?" Sano sniffled. "We don't even get mentioned in the end!"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Megumi said haughtily. "I played a very large roll in the end. _I _happen to have saved the day."

Sano rolled his eyes. "Oh, well great for you! Here I am, I'm supposed to be his best friend, and I get left completely out of the end, while you take all the glory!"

"I know it's hard," Megumi said consolingly, "but at least you had a part. And a part where your character actually made sense, not like in some fics where all the plot lines suck and the characters are super OOC…" Megumi suddenly turned broody, mumbling about crazy crossovers and fanfics that don't make sense.

"You mean how we're being now?" Sano asked, but Megumi growled.

"You don't think the Author is letting her anger at not being able to find anything worth reading seep into her story, do you?"

"What?" Megumi cried. "She would never do that! She's far more professional! Besides, she's really been enjoying Broken Pieces and Converse recently…"

"Alright, but here's what I don't get about_ our_ story," Sano said. "Kaoru is all prepaid for her journey to Tokyo, but Kenshin just goes with her. He doesn't have food, a change of clothes… He just leaves. Plus, remember when Kaoru went back? No one thought it was weird that Aoshi wasn't surprised to see here. If he was supposed to think she was gone that whole time, wouldn't that look a little suspicious to the servants?"

"Yeah," Megumi agreed. "Talk about your plot holes. Maybe she should stop writing at two in the morning, just for the sake of things making sense. I think she really needs a beta reader. _Hint hint, wink wink!_ If you're interested, let her know! Last chance!"

Meanwhile, the author grumbled at her characters for having minds of their own. "You two shuddup!"

"Author-chan?" Megumi said sweetly. "I think for the sake of your readers you should stop writing for tonight. I can hear their brain cells popping."

"I think my own are popping, but I promised them a bonus chapter…all I have is this worthless piece of crap…"

"See!" Sano cried. "She thinks we're worthless!"

"Do not!"

"Do too!"

"Do not!"

"Do too!" Sano stuck out his tongue.

Megumi stood and said in a sugary sweet voice, "Alright, I'm ending this madness before you loose all respect for the author. Thank you all for being so wonderful and reviewing her story, she really does appreciate it, she's just sort of in a state of high-caffination at 11:26 pm, and should probably be in bed, _since she is starting school tomorrow!!_" Megumi glared at the author, who was ignoring her in favor if glaring at Sano. "The author would like to let you know she will be changing her name to Lady Koh soon, incase you would like to keep up with her work." Megumi glanced at the bickering author and Sano, the former of which was pulling a Yahiko and gnawing on the mans' head. "Ok, I think that's enough for tonight!" Megumi slyly hit the 'quit' button and turned off the computer.


End file.
